Death Penalty
While the death penalty remains legal at the federal and military level, some states prohibit it either in their constitution or through a moratorium. Others unfortunately gleefully move forward with executions even long after circumstances have changed.
States of Democracy divides states into four groups based on the status of capital punishment there:
- Very Bad (0): capital punishment is legal
- Below Average (1): capital punishment is legal, but there have been no executions within the last 10 years (March 2025)
- Good (2): capital punishment has been formally suspended in some way
- Very Good (3): capital punishment is prohibited by state law
Data Sources