Death Penalty News

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); 1 July 2026: Shouresh Sattarzadeh, a Kurdish man who spent 20 years on death row for an accidental death when he was 18 years of age, was executed in Sanandaj Central Prison. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was hanged in Sanandaj Central Prison on 1st July 2026. His identity has been established as Shouresh Sattarzadeh, a 38-year-old Kurdish man from Saqqez. He was arrested 20 years ago and sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder.

The group said 25 Alabama death row prisoners remained under sentences imposed through a practice the state abolished in 2017. We The Jury —a new coalition of jurors, judges, attorneys, elected officials, community advocates and activists—is urging Governor Kay Ivey to grant clemency to death row inmates who were sentenced by judicial override, a now-illegal sentencing scheme that allowed judges to override a jury’s life sentence recommendation in favor of the death penalty.

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Nearly four decades after the Anfal campaign left tens of thousands of Kurdish families searching for answers, Iraq's judicial process has reached another decisive moment. On Thursday, the Federal Court of Appeals upheld the death sentence imposed on Ajaj Ahmed Hardan al-Tikriti, a former Baath-era prison official convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity, sexual violence, and the murder of Kurdish detainees held at the notorious Nugra Salman prison in 1988.

Lor prisoner Abbas Abdolmaleki, a resident of Varamin who had been sentenced to death on a charge of “premeditated murder,” was executed at Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj in early February 2026. The Hengaw Organization for Human Rights is reporting the execution for the first time nearly five months after it was carried out. According to information received by Hengaw, the 40-year-old was executed on Sunday, February 1, 2026, at Ghezel Hesar Prison.

The protocol that took effect in 2025 sheds new light on Tony Carruthers’ botched execution, when Dr. Mark Fowler spent nearly an hour trying, and failing, to place a secondary IV line Tennessee’s lethal injection protocol adopted a year and a half ago appears to include reduced training in IV placement. That’s the part of the process prison staff failed to complete last month before aborting the execution of Tony Carruthers. Filings from ongoing litigation over the protocol show concerns about the executioners’ training and qualifications aren’t new. 

PINE BELT, Miss. (WDAM) - “Effective July 1”: It’s a phrase we’ve heard over and over. Now, that date is here. Laws passed in the 2026 legislative session will take effect starting Wednesday. Sen. Joey Filligane says a few of the laws enforce stricter penalties. The goal isn’t to put more people behind bars, but actually the exact opposite.

BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — The firing squad will become the primary method of execution in the State of Idaho starting July 1, 2026. Those in support of the change argue it's a more humane and efficient method, while some are more skeptical. Idaho is now one of five states to authorize the firing squad as a means of execution. Other states include Mississippi, Oklahoma, Utah and South Carolina. Where Idaho differs, it's the only state to make it the primary method.

Group of eight wants hold on death penalty until problems solved A group of Tennessee Republican senators is urging the governor to commission an independent review of a failed execution and correct any problems before the state attempts another execution. In a demand for “full transparency and accountability” from the Department of Correction, eight GOP senators sent a letter Monday to Gov. Bill Lee requesting that he initiate a review of the botched execution of Tony Von Carruthers on May 21. The letter obtained by the Lookout is signed by Senator Majority Leader Jack Johnson of Franklin, Sen. Ferrell Haile of Gallatin, Sen. Joey Hensley of Hohenwald, Sen. Becky Massey of Knoxville, Sen. Richard Briggs of Knoxville, Sen. Tom Hatcher of Maryville, Sen. Dawn White of Murfreesboro and Sen. Ken Yager of Kingston.

Amid public outcry about death row inmates applying for clemency, the government board that handles the process is being overhauled by a new state law with provisions taking effect July 1. Under the Kansas Constitution and state law, the governor has executive clemency power, which allows Gov. Laura Kelly to commute a sentence. Clemency applications are first submitted to the Prisoner Review Board, which reviews the case in accordance with state laws before ultimately submitting a recommendation to the governor, who makes the final decision.

Iranian authorities have executed two Lor prisoners, Mohammadali Hajihasani and Mahmoud Qaem, in separate cases at Yasuj Central Prison. They had previously been sentenced to death on charges of "premeditated murder" and "armed robbery," respectively. According to information received by Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, the executions were carried out in the early hours of June 22, 2026. Hajihasani, 25, and Qaem, 28, were both from Yasuj. Informed sources told Hengaw that Hajihasani had been arrested two years earlier on the charge of "premeditated murder," while Qaem had been arrested four years earlier on the charge of "armed robbery." Both were later sentenced to death.

The decision affirms a lower court’s ruling nullifying Jimmie “Chris” Duncan’s 1998 first-degree murder conviction. Duncan was convicted based in part on forensic evidence that is now widely regarded as junk science. Former Louisiana death row inmate Jimmie “Chris” Duncan is officially a free man following a unanimous ruling Monday by the Louisiana Supreme Court. In the opinion, justices upheld a lower court’s decision to toss out Duncan’s 1998 conviction for killing his former girlfriend’s toddler, Haley Oliveaux, citing flawed forensics practices used to convict him. 

Two for­mer California death-sen­tenced pris­on­ers, Ernest Dykes and Curtis Ervin , have filed law­suits against Alameda County, accus­ing the District Attorney’s office of ​“set[ting] out to rig the juries” in their cap­i­tal cas­es. Both men were released from prison after their death sen­tences were reduced because of the dis­cov­ery of uncon­sti­tu­tion­al pros­e­cu­to­r­i­al mis­con­duct dur­ing each of their jury selec­tions in the 1990s. The law­suits allege that the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office (ACDAO) had a long-stand­ing prac­tice of engag­ing in racial dis­crim­i­na­tion dur­ing jury selec­tion in cap­i­tal cas­es. ​“The evi­dence shows that the errors were com­mit­ted know­ing­ly and not in iso­la­tion, but rather, borne from the prod­uct of a pat­tern and prac­tice rein­forced by those with super­vi­so­ry author­i­ty with­in the ACDAO,” the suits state. Both law­suits accuse the ACDAO of vio­lat­ing the men’s right to a fair tri­al by uncon­sti­tu­tion­al­ly...

Special tribunal in capital Dhaka hands down death penalty in absentia for crimes against humanity DHAKA, Bangladesh—A special tribunal in Bangladesh on Sunday gave the death sentence in absentia to three police officers, including the former police chief of the capital Dhaka, in connection with the killing of protesters during a 2024 uprising that led to the collapse of the government. A three-member International Crimes Tribunal led by Justice Md Golam Mortuza Mozumder delivered the verdict.

An Australian man has been charged with murder after the body of a 17-year-old girl was found in a suitcase in Thailand. Police in the coastal city of Pattaya said they found Tunchanok Donhomla "stuffed" in the bag, which had been discarded near a railway track, in the early hours of Saturday. Thai police said they arrested Simon Peter Carman at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport in connection with the death as he was allegedly "preparing to flee the country." He denies the charges. In a message issued to the victim's family after his arrest, Carman said: "I feel bad for what happened to your daughter. It was out of my control."

Pune (Maharashtra): A special court in Pune on Monday awarded the death penalty to a 65-year-old man convicted of raping and murdering a three-year-old girl in Pune district, describing the crime as “heinous.” The convict, identified as Bhimrao Kambale, was found guilty of raping and murdering the minor in Nasrapur village. The incident took place on May 1. The case was heard in a fast-track court (POCSO) following the incident. While pronouncing the sentence, the special court observed that the nature of the offence was heinous and held that the gravity and motive of the crime warranted the imposition of the death penalty.

Recently Florida carried out the execution of Dusty Spencer , a 74-year-old Marine veteran, for the murder of his wife, Karen, in 1992. It was the ninth Florida execution this year. For their own sake, I urge Florida’s corrections workers to refuse to carry out another one. Before you dismiss me as some soft lefty, you should know that I am an Air Force veteran. I voted for Ron DeSantis for governor twice—and for Donald Trump for president three times.

Correction officials confirmed Westville can accommodate firing squad executions as lawmakers, the governor, and the U.S. Justice Department push for changes to protocols. As Indiana inches toward what could be its fourth state execution since resuming capital punishment, prison officials confirmed the state’s next correctional complex is already equipped for an execution method Hoosier lawmakers have yet to authorize. The Indiana Department of Correction confirmed to the Indiana Capital Chronicle that the new Westville Correctional Facility, now nearing completion, is designed to accommodate both lethal injection and firing squad executions. Indiana law currently allows only lethal injection.

A United Nations expert on violence offered a shocking reaction when a female October 7 survivor confronted her for denying Hamas' rapes after she detailed her own sexual abuse at the hands of the terrorist group. Ilana Gritzewsky testified at the UN Human Rights Council's 62nd session on Tuesday and offered an emotional account of the trauma Hamas inflicted on her when she was held as a hostage. 'On October 7, terrorists stormed our Kibbutz, murdering, kidnapping, and burning,' Gritzewsky said. 'They touched me and sexually abused me.' Gritzewsky, who was brought to the floor by watchdog nongovernmental organization UN Watch, added that she had been sexually assaulted by at least seven Hamas terrorists.

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); 24 June 2026: Issa Rahmani, a Baluch man on death row for drug-related offences, was executed in Zahedan Central Prison. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, a man was hanged in Zahedan Central Prison on 21 June 2026. His identity has been established as Issa Rahmani, a 38-year-old Baluch man from Saravan. He was arrested almost four years ago and sentenced to death on drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court.

74-year-old man becomes oldest inmate executed in modern Florida history  A 74-year-old man convicted of fatally stabbing his wife became the oldest person executed in Florida’s modern history on Thursday, and the state is scheduled to execute another 74-year-old inmate next month.  Dusty Ray Spencer was pronounced dead at 6:10 p.m. following a 3-drug injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. Spencer was convicted of the 1992 stabbing death of his wife Karen.