Washington D.C., Jan 6, 2017 / 00:01 am
The year 2016 marked a major decline in the number of executions and sentences to capital punishment in the United States, a new report says.
Last year there were 20 executions in the U.S., the lowest level in 25 years. The peak was in 1999, when 98 persons were executed.
Thirty death sentences were imposed in 2016, the lowest since the death penalty was reinstated in 1973. In 1996, death penalty sentences peaked at 315.
"America is in the midst of a major climate change concerning capital punishment. While there may be fits and starts and occasional steps backward, the long-term trend remains clear," Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, said Dec. 16.