States with and without the Capital Punishment in USA

States with and without the Capital Punishment in the USA. Capital punishment is a legal penalty in the United States, currently used by 31 states, the federal government, and the military. Its existence can be traced to the beginning of the American colonies. The United States is the only Western country currently applying the death penalty, one of 54 countries worldwide applying it, and was the first to develop lethal injection as a method of execution, which has since been adopted by five other countries

There were no executions in the United States between 1967 and 1977. In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down capital punishment statutes in Furman v. Georgia, reducing all death sentences pending at the time to life imprisonment.

Subsequently, a majority of states passed new death penalty statutes, and the court affirmed the legality of capital punishment in the 1976 case Gregg v. Georgia.
States without the death penalty

States without the death penalty

19 states and the District of Colombia have abolished the death penalty.

Alaska	Connecticut	Delaware
Hawaii	Illinois	Iowa
Maine	Maryland	Massachusetts
Michigan	Minnesota	New Jersey
New Mexico	New York	North Dakota
Rhode Island	Vermont	West Virginia
Virginia	Wisconsin	District of Columbia

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1. Alaska

The last execution in Alaska was in 1950 in Juneau.

2. Connecticut

Connecticut’s capital punishment was reinstated in 1976 and was abolished by the legislature and Governor Malloy on Apr. 25, 2012. The 2012 repeal was not retroactive and death row inmates could still be executed. On Aug. 12, 2015, Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled the death penalty unconstitutional and banned any further executions.

3. Delaware

2016  Capital punishment was abolished in 1958 and subsequently reinstated in 1961. It was reinstated in 1974. On Aug. 2, 2016, the Delaware Supreme Court ruled in the case Rauf v. State of Delaware that the state’s death penalty statute violates the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution by giving judges too much leeway in sentencing. On Dec. 15, 2016, the Delaware Supreme court ruled that their previous decision in Aug. should apply retroactively to the 12 men who were on Delaware’s death row.

4. Hawaii

Hawaii abolished the death penalty before being granted statehood in 1957.

5. Illinois

Illinois reinstated capital punishment in 1974. Governor Ryan instituted a moratorium on executions on Jan. 31, 2000 and Governor Quinn signed legislation to abolish the death penalty on Mar. 9, 2011.

6. Iowa

Governor Carpenter abolished the death penalty in 1872. The legislature and Governor Gear reinstated capital punishment in 1878. Governor Hughes signed a death penalty abolition bill in 1965.

7. Maine

The legislature abolished the death penalty in 1876, reinstated it in 1883, and abolished it again in 1887.

8. Maryland

The death penalty was reinstated in 1978. In May 2001, Governor Glendening established a moratorium on executions which was lifted by his successor, Governor Ehrlich. Governor O’Malley signed legislation to abolish the death penalty on May 2, 2013.

9. Massachusetts

Capital punishment was reinstated by voter amendment in 1982. The law establishing capital punishment was ruled unconstitutional in 1984 with state court case Commonwealth v. Colon-Cruz.

10. Michigan

Michigan banned the death penalty in 1846 for all crimes but treason; voter referendum in 1963 banned the death penalty for all crimes, including treason.

11. Minnesota

Over 20 bills to reintroduce the death penalty have been proposed since 1911, all of which have been unsuccessful.

12. New Jersey

The death penalty was reinstated in 1982 then abolished by Governor Corzine in 2007.

13. New Mexico

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1976. Governor Richardson signed abolition of the death penalty into law in 2009. The state still has a law allowing for execution for espionage, but the DOJ considers New Mexico to have no capital punishment.

14. New York

Capital punishment was reinstated by Governor Pataki in 1995, and New York’s death penalty statute was ruled unconstitutional in 2004 in the state court’s People v. Lavalle decision. The 2007 decision People v. Taylor also found part of the sentencing statute unconstitutional and declared that no defendants may be sentenced to death until the statute is corrected. Taylor’s sentence was converted to life in prison, and New York no longer had anyone on death row. Governor Paterson issued an executive order in 2008 to remove all capital punishment equipment from Green Haven Correctional Facility in 2008. The death penalty has not been abolished by law and may be used if the unconstitutional sentencing statute is revised by the legislature.

15. North Dakota

Capital punishment was abolished in 1915 for all crimes excluding treason and murder committed by already jailed inmates. In 1973 the legislature voted to make no crimes eligible for the death penalty.

16. Rhode Island

Capital punishment was abolished in 1852 and reinstated by the legislature in 1873. The state rewrote its death penalty law to mandate capital punishment for certain crimes. That mandate was ruled unconstitutional in 1979. In 1984 the legislature abolished capital punishment entirely.

17. Vermont

The legislature effectively abolished capital punishment in 1965 unless a warden, prison employee, or law enforcement officer was murdered. But Vermont’s jurors never used the death sentence option when available so legislators removed that exception in 1987. Vermont law still allows for execution for treason but the DOJ considers Vermont to have no capital punishment.

18. West Virginia

West Virginia was the last state to abolish the death penalty.

19. Wisconsin

The death penalty was abolished in 1853.

District of Columbia

The death penalty was repealed by the DC Council in 1981.

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States with the death penalty

31 states have capital punishment in the United States.

Alabama	Arizona	Arkansas
California	Colorado	Florida
Georgia	Idaho	Indiana
Kansas	Kentucky	Louisiana
Mississippi	Missouri	Montana
Nebraska	Nevada	New Hampshire
North Carolina	Ohio	Oklahoma
Oregon	Pennsylvania	South Carolina
South Dakota	Tennessee	Texas
Utah,	Virginia	Washington
Wyoming

1. Alabama

Alabama reinstated capital punishment in 1976.

2. Arizona

The death penalty was abolished in 1916, reinstated in 1918, and reinstated in 1973.

3. Arkansas

As his last act as Governor, Winthrop Rockefeller granted clemency to all death-row inmates in 1970. Capital punishment was reinstated by the legislature and Governor Bumpers in 1973. On June 22, 2012, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled the death penalty law invalid until the state specifies the type and quantity of drug to be used for lethal injections.

4. California

California Supreme Court case, People v. Anderson, temporarily ended capital punishment in 1972 but it was reinstated via voter approval of Proposition 17 in 1972. The Supreme Court of California again found the death penalty statute unconstitutional in 1976, but it was revised and reinstated in 1977.

5. Colorado

Capital punishment was abolished in 1897 and reinstated in 1901 by the legislature. Colorado was the last state to perform an execution (1967) before Furman. Capital punishment was reinstated in 1975.

6. Florida

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1972. On Jan. 12, 2015, the US Supreme Court ruled that Florida’s method of sentencing people to death, which allowed judges, rather than juries, to impose a death sentence, violated the 6th Amendment. Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi said that due to the ruling, “the state will need to make changes to its death-sentencing statutes,” and that “existing death sentences will need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.”

7. Georgia

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973. Georgia’s capital punishment system received international attention with the 2011 execution of Troy Davis; Davis’ supporters cited a lack of physical and DNA evidence.

8. Idaho

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1973.

9. Indiana

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973.

10. Kansas

Kansas banned many applications of the death penalty in 1872 and all applications in 1907. It was reinstated in 1935 and again in 1994.

11. Kentucky

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1975.

12. Louisiana

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973.

13. Mississippi

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1974.

14. Missouri

Capital punishment was abolished in 1911, reinstated in 1917, and reinstated 1975.

15. Montana

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1974.

16. Nebraska

The voters of Nebraska reinstated the death penalty on Nov. 8, 2016. [22] The Nebraska Legislature had abolished the death penalty on May 27, 2015, with a 30-19 vote, overriding the veto of Governor Pete Ricketts.

17. Nevada

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973.

18. New Hampshire

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1991. New Hampshire only allows the death penalty for murder under specific circumstances.

19. North Carolina

The death penalty was reinstated in 1977.

20. Ohio

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1974.

21. Oklahoma

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973.

22. Oregon

Capital punishment was abolished in 1914 by a public vote and reinstated in 1920 at the urging of Governor West. In 1964 Oregon voted to abolish the death penalty and in 1978 voted to reinstate capital punishment. A 1981 state Supreme Court Case ruled the 1978 measure unconstitutional, and in 1984 voters approved a measure that overturned the 1978 decision making the death penalty legal again. In 2011 Governor Kitzhaber placed a moratorium on executions.

23. Pennsylvania

A 1972 state Supreme Court case (Commonwealth v. Bradley) ruled Pennsylvania’s application of capital punishment unconstitutional. The legislature reinstated the death penalty in 1974, only to have the State Supreme court rule its reinstatement unconstitutional in 1977. In 1978 the legislature passed an edited death penalty bill to correct the constitutional concerns raised by the state Supreme Court and the US Supreme Court. On Feb. 13, 2015, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf declared a death penalty moratorium in the state.

24. South Carolina

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1974.

25. South Dakota

The death penalty was abolished in 1915, reinstated in 1918, and reinstated in 1979.

26. Tennessee

Tennessee abolished capital punishment in 1915, reinstated it in 1939, and reinstated it in 1974.

27. Texas

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1974. Texas has carried out the most executions in the United States since Furman with 483 executions as of July 18, 2012.

28. Utah

The death penalty was reinstated in 1973.

29. Virginia

The first recorded execution in an English American colony occurred in Virginia in 1608. Capital punishment was reinstated in 1975.

30. Washington

Capital punishment was abolished in 1913, reinstated in 1919, and reinstated in 1975. On Feb. 11, 2014, Governor Jay Inslee placed a moratorium on executions.

31. Wyoming

Capital punishment was reinstated in 1977.