(NewsNation) — A new report by the Death Plenty Information Center finds that new death sentences are on the decline in the U.S. in 2025, despite there being an increase in executions.
The non-profit released its mid-year review July 7, noting that in the first six months of 2025 “new death sentences are down nearly 30% compared to the same period last year.” According to the report, as of its publication, ten people have been sentenced to death in six states, compared to 14 people at this time in 2024. Meanwhile, 25 executions have been carried out this year, “equal to the total number of executions for all of 2024.”
The center notes that this year’s executions have been geographically concentrated, with 60% of those executions taking place in Florida, South Carolina and Texas. Other states that have carried out executions include Alabama, Arizona, Indiana, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Tennessee. According to the report, people executed this year spent an average of 24 years on death row.
In January, President Trump issued an executive order stating that the attorney general would be reevaluating the cases of 37 death row inmates whose cases were commuted to life without parole by former President Joe Biden.
According to a 2024 Gallup poll, 53% of Americans are in favor of the death penalty for a person convicted of murder, a stark decline from 80% in 1994. As of July 9, there are 10 executions scheduled for the remainder of 2025, the next of which is slated to take place July 15 in Florida.