US Capital Punishment Cases Surged in the Past Year to Highest Level in 16 Years.
The number of state-sanctioned killings in the US has dramatically increased in 2025, reaching a level not seen in since 2009. This sharp uptick is linked to a concerted push to revive the death penalty, combined with a significant change in the approach of the US Supreme Court toward last-minute appeals.
A Sobering Count: 47 Executions in a Single Year
A total of 47 individuals—all of whom were male—were put to death by states that utilize the death penalty this year. This figure is nearly twice the count from the previous year, marking the highest annual total for capital punishment in the country in 16 years.
"Data indicates that the death penalty in 2025 is growing less popular with the public even as politicians carry out death sentences in search of waning political benefits."
An International Exception
This sharp increase further separates the United States from nearly all other advanced economies, almost none of which still carry out executions. Currently, only Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan have carried out capital punishment among similarly developed states.
A Public Opinion Divide
The comeback of state killings clashes directly with long-term trends and current public sentiment. For years, the use of the death penalty had been in a steady decrease. At the same time, polling indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has fallen to a 50-year low, with 52% of Americans in favor. A majority of adults under the age of 55 now are against it.
Presidential Influence
On his first day back in office, the sitting President issued an presidential directive titled "Reinstating Capital Punishment." This order aimed to ensure that statutes permitting capital punishment were "upheld and properly enforced," signaling a major shift from the previous presidency.
"It’s in the air, it’s in the national rhetoric sent down from the top—the idea is to use harsh measures to solve social problems," stated a well-known activist against executions.
A Surge in State Executions
The national initiative was echoed and amplified at the state level. Florida became a notable outlier, conducting 19 executions in 2025—a dramatic increase from just one the year before. This shattered the state's previous record.
Alongside several other southern states, these four states were responsible for almost three-quarters of all executions this year. Overall, a dozen states employed their death chambers, up from nine in 2024.
Evolving Methods
As activity increased, some states adopted increasingly extreme techniques. Louisiana concluded a long period without executions and followed another state's lead to employ nitrogen gas as an means of execution. Witnesses reported the prisoner convulsed for multiple minutes during the process.
Meanwhile, South Carolina carried out the initial use by firing squad in the US since 2010, using this method for three of its total executions this year. Accounts suggested that in one case, faulty targeting may have prolonged suffering for the condemned.
The Supreme Court's Role
The surge in executions is also connected to the posture of the nation's highest court. The majority-conservative bench rejected all applications to stay an execution in 2025, a notable demonstration of judicial disengagement.
This marks a change from the court's traditional function as a final avenue for legal challenges based on innocence claims, rights-based arguments, or allegations of cruel punishment. "We’re now operating without a safety net," noted a legal scholar. "Federal courts are supposed to serve as a backstop, but that stop gap has been eviscerated."
