Capital Punishment
The Latest
Supreme Court rejects Texas' standards for executing the intellectually disabled
In a death penalty case with national implications, the Supreme Court on Tuesday overturned a Texas court ruling that a... Read more
Is the death penalty a form of psychological torture? This author says yes
Recent “botched executions” resulting in painful deaths for inmates have stirred controversy over the use of the death penalty. But... Read more
The death penalty doesn't solve problems, archbishop tells UN
The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations reiterated the Vatican’s defense of all human life in... Read more
Race-based death sentence rejected at US Supreme Court
A death row inmate in Texas deserves a new sentencing hearing because his own lawyers called on an expert who... Read more
Why this slain priest's opposition to the death penalty matters
A priest who was murdered in 2016 had previously certified that he would not want his murderer executed. Three Catholic... Read more
Philippines bishops oppose bid for severe death penalty revival
The Catholic bishops of the Philippines voiced strong objections to proposals intended to reinstate the death penalty in the country.... Read more
Virginia bishops: Death penalty won't heal a broken world
For two Catholic bishops in Virginia, the execution of a man convicted of brutally killing a family of four was... Read more
Pray for Dylann Roof's victims – and his conversion, S.C. bishop says
The death sentence announced this week for mass murderer Dylann Roof prompted the local Catholic bishop to call for prayer,... Read more
Death penalty was on the decline in America in 2016
The year 2016 marked a major decline in the number of executions and sentences to capital punishment in the United... Read more
Many states still execute inmates with severe mental illnesses
More than 10 years ago, the Supreme Court ruled in two separate cases that the death penalty is unconstitutional when... Read more
Supreme Court appears skeptical of Texas' death penalty standards
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a death penalty case that could determine the fate of a man... Read more
Bishop Conley rejects pro-death penalty ads distorting his words
Bishop James Conley of Lincoln has called on the group “Nebraskans for the Death Penalty” to retract social media advertisements... Read more
Texas bishops: The death penalty is a pro-life issue
The abolition of the death penalty is “undeniably a pro-life issue” that would better serve society and lead criminals to... Read more
Don't bring back the death penalty, New Mexico bishops plead
The Catholic bishops of New Mexico are speaking up against a proposal to reintroduce capital punishment in the state, saying... Read more
California bishops urge voters to reject the death penalty this fall
On Thursday, the bishops of California announced their support of a state ballot measure that would end the use of... Read more
There's no excuse for it: Pope Francis on the death penalty
In a video message sent Wednesday to a gathering of advocates for abolition of the death penalty, Pope Francis welcomed... Read more
Executions in the US are falling dramatically. Why?
Executions in the United States fell to the lowest number in decades in 2015, and recent Popes may have helped... Read more
Ahead of Florida execution, bishops renew calls against death penalty
Stressing that capital punishment is not necessary in the modern-day U.S., Florida’s Catholic bishops have asked the state governor to... Read more
Pope appeals for life of Georgia death row inmate, but parole board rejects
The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles has declined to commute the death sentence of a local woman scheduled to... Read more
It's not over yet: Nebraska bishops, Catholics continue to fight death penalty
Nebraska’s three Catholic bishops have asked all people of goodwill to continue to fight the death penalty, after it won... Read more
