US Executions Skyrocketed 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 surge is linked to a focused campaign to reinvigorate the death penalty, combined with a notable shift in the approach of the US Supreme Court toward eleventh-hour pleas.
A Grim Tally: 47 Executions in a Single Year
Exactly 47 individuals—each one were male—were put to death by states that utilize the death penalty this year. This number represents nearly twice the total from the previous year, constituting the highest annual total for executions in the country since 2009.
"The evidence shows that the death penalty in 2025 is increasingly unpopular with the American people even as elected officials carry out death sentences in search of waning political benefits."
A Global Outlier
This pronounced rise further separates the US from nearly all other advanced economies, very few of which continue the practice. Currently, just a handful of Asian nations have carried out capital punishment among peer countries.
Contradictory Trends
The resurgence of executions stands in stark contrast with broader patterns and modern public opinion. Over the past two decades, the use of the death penalty had been in gradual decline. Meanwhile, surveys indicate approval of capital punishment for murder convictions has fallen to a 50-year low, with 52% of Americans in favor. Most of adults under the age of 55 now are against it.
Executive Action Sets the Tone
On his inauguration day back in office, the sitting President issued an presidential directive titled "Reinstating Capital Punishment." This order sought to ensure that laws authorizing capital punishment were "respected and faithfully implemented," signaling a major shift from the prior administration.
"It’s in the air, it’s in the national rhetoric sent down from the top—you use violence and cruelty to solve social problems," remarked a prominent activist against executions.
State-Level Frenzy
The national initiative was echoed and intensified at the level of individual states. Florida emerged as a notable outlier, carrying out 19 executions in 2025—a staggering increase from just one the previous year. This shattered the state's prior annual record.
Alongside several other southern states, these a quartet of jurisdictions were responsible for almost three-quarters of all executions this year. Overall, 12 states employed their execution facilities, up from nine in 2024.
Evolving Methods
As activity increased, some states adopted more controversial methods. Louisiana concluded a long period without executions and followed another state's lead to employ nitrogen hypoxia as an means of execution. Witnesses reported the prisoner visibly shook for multiple minutes during the process.
Meanwhile, South Carolina performed the initial use by a squad of shooters in the US since 2010, using this method for three of its five executions this year. Accounts suggested that in an instance, imprecise aim may have caused extended agony for the individual.
The Supreme Court's Role
The increase in executions is also connected to the position of the US Supreme Court. The majority-conservative bench denied every request to stay an execution in 2025, a notable demonstration of judicial disengagement.
This marks a change from the court's historical role as a last resort for legal challenges based on innocence claims, constitutional arguments, or allegations of cruel punishment. "The system now functions without a safety net," commented a legal scholar. "The judiciary are meant to act as a final check, but that stop gap has been removed."