Death sentences imposed this year are at the lowest level since 1973
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Death sentences imposed and death sentences carried out continue to decline.
Forty-nine defendants were sentenced to death this year, the lowest number since 1973, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Twenty-eight inmates were executed this year, the lowest number since 1991. The New York Times covers the findings (PDF). A press release is here.
Only six states carried out executions in 2015. They are Texas (13 executions), Missouri (six executions), Georgia (five executions), Florida (two executions), Oklahoma (one execution) and Virginia (one execution).
Eight of the 49 death sentences imposed this year were in Riverside, California. California imposed 14 death sentences this year, followed by Florida (nine), Alabama (six), Arizona (three), and Oklahoma (three).
