The federal death penalty was effectively reinstated by the Federal Death Penalty Act of 1994, which expanded the number of federal crimes punishable by execution to roughly 60.
Between 2020 and January 2021, the federal government carried out 13 executions, the most under any administration in over a century.
In July 2021, Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on federal executions pending a Justice Department review of protocols.
Supporters argue the federal death penalty deters the most serious crimes such as terrorism and mass murder; critics cite studies, including a 2014 PNAS study, estimating that about 4% of those sentenced to death in the U.S. are likely innocent.
As of 2024, 27 states authorize capital punishment, 23 states have abolished it, and Gallup polling shows national support for the death penalty for murder at about 53%, down from a peak of 80% in 1994.