Public Support for Death Penalty Remains Near Historic Lows

The use and imposition of the death penalty in America saw a continued decline in 2022 as polls showed public support for capital punishment stayed near historic lows, according to a report from the Death Penalty Information Center. The report notes several factors have contributed to the steadily decreasing use of capital punishment, most recently illustrated last week when outgoing Democratic Gov. Kate Brown commuted the death sentences of all 17 persons on Oregon’s death row, calling capital punishment “dysfunctional and immoral.”

In contrast, three of the six states that carried out executions encountered trouble carrying out death sentences, leading the Death Penalty Information Center to name 2022 “the year of the botched execution.” Five executions and two attempted ones this year, in Alabama, Arizona and Texas, significantly deviated from or illustrated problems with prescribed protocols, the group’s executive director told CNN. Mississippi, Missouri and Oklahoma also executed death row inmates this year.

“As the death penalty declines, the states that want to carry it out are engaging in more and more extreme conduct,” said Robert Dunham, Director of the Death Penalty Information Center. "There is an appearance that the states that want to carry out executions are desperate and are willing to do extreme things that most of the country considers unacceptable.”

Overall, 18 executions were carried out this year, per the report, the fewest since 1991 (excepting 2020 and 2021). That tally is down 82% from the peak in 1999, when 98 executions were carried out, and brings the five-year average to 18.6 executions per year – the lowest in three decades.

Overall, public support for the death penalty remains similar to recent years, states the report released last week. A recent Gallup poll shows 55% of Americans say they are in favor of the death penalty for convicted murderers. That figure has remained steady in recent years, per Gallup: 2022 was the sixth consecutive year support for capital punishment was between 54% and 56%, but below the 60% to 80% readings recorded between 1976 and 2016.

Given falloff in its use and public support, Dunham said, “I think the long-term prognosis for capital punishment in the US is that it remains on a downward trajectory.”

You can read and download "The Death Penalty in 2022: Year End Report" from the Death Penalty Information Center's website.