Death sentences
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A death sentence is not the same thing as an execution: years can pass between the two, and the sentence may be overturned on appeal, commuted, or never carried out. Counting them separately measures two different things: how far a state resorts to capital punishment, and how far it actually applies it.
This page collects the news on death sentences handed down around the world, on the later stages of appeal, and on the sentences upheld or overturned. Executions have a page of their own.
Latest news
- JUNE 12, 2017DEATH PENALTY
TEXAS (USA): JERRY HARTFIELD RELEASED FROM JAIL
On Monday afternoon, Jerry Hartfield, 61, Black, was released from Hutchins State Jail in Dallas, after spending 41 years behind bars, part of the time on death row.
- JUNE 12, 2017TexasDEATH PENALTY
USA - Texas. Jerry Hartfield, 61, Black, was released from Hutchins State Jail
USA - Texas. Jerry Hartfield, 61, Black, was released from Hutchins State Jail
JUNE 11, 2017PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: DEATH PENALTY FOR BLASPHEMY ON FACEBOOK
A Pakistani court has sentenced to death a man who allegedly committed blasphemy on Facebook, a prosecutor said, in a first such case that involves social media.
JUNE 8, 2017PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: MAN GETS DEATH PENALTY IN MURDER CASE
A court awarded death sentence to an accused for his involvement in a murder case in Faisalabad
- JUNE 8, 2017OklahomaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Oklahoma. A jury sentenced Ronnie Eugene Fuston to death
USA - Oklahoma. A jury sentenced Ronnie Eugene Fuston to death
JUNE 8, 2017MalaysiaDEATH PENALTYMALAYSIA: 9 FILIPINOS SENTENCED TO DEATH OVER SABAH STANDOFF
The Malaysian Court of Appeal sentenced 9 Filipinos to death over the Sabah standoff that killed at least 70 people in 2013.
JUNE 5, 2017IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: TWO GET CAPITAL PUNISHMENT FOR TRIPLE MURDER
The Namakkal Additional District Court awarded capital punishment to two persons in connection with a triple murder that took place in 2011.
- JUNE 2, 2017DEATH PENALTY
FLORIDA (USA): JURY VOTE 12-0 TO RECOMMEND JUAN ROSARIO BE EXECUTED
An Orange County jury voted 12-0 late Friday to recommend 30-year-old Juan Rosario be executed.
- JUNE 2, 2017FloridaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Florida. A jury voted 12-0 to recommend Juan Rosario be executed.
USA - Florida. A jury voted 12-0 to recommend Juan Rosario be executed.
- JUNE 1, 2017EgyptDEATH PENALTY
EGYPT: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR CHILD'S RAPE
An Egyptian court sentenced a man to death for raping a 20-month-old girl, in a case that sparked widespread public outrage, judicial sources told Reuters.
- JUNE 1, 2017Sri LankaDEATH PENALTY
SRI LANKA: FIVE INCLUDING THREE OF ONE FAMILY SENTENCED TO DEATH
Five suspects, including three members of the same family, who were found guilty of three separate murders in Vavuniya, were sentenced to death by Vavuniya High Court Judge Balendran Shashimahendran.
- MAY 31, 2017KuwaitDEATH PENALTY
KUWAIT: SEVEN MEN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR RAPING A 10-YEAR-OLD DISABLED BOY
Seven men have been sentenced to death for raping a disabled boy in Kuwait and threatening to leak footage of the horrifying assault on social media.
- MAY 30, 2017BangladeshDEATH PENALTY
BANGLADESH: MAN TO WALK GALLOWS FOR KILLING GIRL AFTER RAPE
A Jessore court sentenced a man to death in a case for killing a minor girl after rape in 2014.
MAY 30, 2017VietnamDEATH PENALTYVIETNAM: FIVE SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR HEROIN SMUGGLING
A Vietnamese drug lord who continued to run his smuggling network from prison was sentenced to die alongside four of his lieutenants, an official said.
- MAY 30, 2017ChinaDEATH PENALTY
CHINA: LIU ZHIJUN, EX-RAILWAY MINISTER, SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR CORRUPTION
China handed down a suspended death sentence on a former railways minister for corruption, state media said, a case seen as a test of President Xi Jinping’s resolve to crack down on pervasive graft.
- MAY 29, 2017MoroccoDEATH PENALTY
Morocco: murderer of the Jewish couple sentenced to death
29 May 2017: The Criminal Chamber at Casablanca Court of First Instance announced that it would demand the death penalty against the gardener named Mustapha R, accused of the murder of two Moroccan citizens of Jewish confession a year ago, reports the Ara
- MAY 28, 2017MalaysiaDEATH PENALTY
MALAYSIA: KENYAN WOMAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING
A Kenyan woman was sentenced to death by a Malaysian court after she was found guilty of trafficking in methamphetamine four years ago.
- MAY 28, 2017KuwaitDEATH PENALTY
KUWAIT: MAN WHO KILLED POLICE OFFICER SENTENCED TO DEATH
A court in Kuwait has sentenced a Kuwaiti to death for killing one police officer and wounding five others.
- MAY 27, 2017SomaliaDEATH PENALTY
SOMALIA: 5 INSURGENTS SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR ATTEMPTED BOMBINGS
A Somali court sentenced five men to death after they were caught with a vehicle laden with explosives, a court official said, a rare successful prosecution in a country where bombings by the Islamist insurgency are increasing.
- MAY 26, 2017AlabamaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Alabama. Governor Signs Law Shortening Death-Penalty Appeals.
USA - Alabama. Governor Signs Law Shortening Death-Penalty Appeals.
MAY 26, 2017IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN: THREE PRISONERS HANGED ON DRUG CHARGES
The Iranian authorities reportedly hanged three prisoners on drug related charges in the morning.
MAY 25, 2017PakistanDEATH PENALTYPAKISTAN: MAN AWARDED DEATH PENALTY FOR MURDERING RELATIVE
A court ruled death sentence to an accused involved in a murder case in Sargodha the other day. The verdict was announced by Additional District and Sessions Judge Javed Iqbal Ranjha.
- MAY 25, 2017IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: FIVE MAOISTS SENTENCED TO DEATH BY MUNGER COURT IN BIHAR
A Munger court awarded death sentence to five Maoists after convicting them of murder of two CRPF jawans in an ambush during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in Bihar.
- MAY 24, 2017KenyaDEATH PENALTY
KENYA: ITEN MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR MURDER, ROBBERY WITH VIOLENCE
A man was sentenced to death by an Iten court after he was found guilty of murder and robbery with violence.
- MAY 23, 2017IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: MAN, SON GET DEATH SENTENCE IN DOUBLE MURDER CASE IN UP
A 60-year-old man and his son were sentenced to death in Uttar Pradesh for murdering two persons over a land dispute.
MAY 21, 2017Palestinian TerritoriesDEATH PENALTYGAZA: HAMAS SENTENCES THREE PALESTINIANS TO DEATH OVER TOP COMMANDER'S ASSASSINATION
A Gaza military court sentenced to death three people for their involvement in the assassination of top Hamas official Mazen Fuqaha, blamed on Israel by Hamas.
MAY 19, 2017SingaporeDEATH PENALTYSINGAPORE: DRUG TRAFFICKER HANGED AFTER EXHAUSTING AVENUES OF APPEAL
Singaporean drug trafficker Muhammad Ridzuan Md Ali, 31, was executed at Changi Prison, having exhausted all avenues of appeal.
- MAY 18, 2017AlabamaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Alabama. The Senate gave final legislative approval to SB 187
USA - Alabama. The Senate gave final legislative approval to SB 187
- MAY 18, 2017EgyptDEATH PENALTY
EGYPT: 8 MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD MEMBERS SENTENCED TO DEATH
An Egyptian criminal court sentenced eight alleged Muslim Brotherhood members to death for attacking a police station in 2015, local media reported.
- MAY 17, 2017BangladeshDEATH PENALTY
BANGLADESH: 23 TO WALK GALLOWS FOR KILLING FOUR AL MEN
Twenty three people including a BNP leader have been awarded death penalty for killing four activists of Awami League and its student wing Bangladesh Chhatra League of Araihazar of Narayanganj in 2002.