Attorney General – US Attorney General Merrick Garland has banned the execution of federal death sentences. The decision will remain in effect while the US Justice Department analyzes its approach to capital punishment.
“Today the Minister of Justice … issued a memorandum on the imposition of a moratorium on the death penalty at the federal level pending the review of the ministry’s policies and procedures … Executions at the federal level will not be ordered while the reviews are in progress,” the US Department of Justice website said.
“The DOJ must ensure that, in the federal criminal system, everyone is not only given rights under the US constitution and laws, but also treated fairly and humanely,” Mr. Garland quoted him as saying. “This commitment is particularly valid when it comes to the death penalty.”
The death penalty in the United States is practiced in 28 states. It is legalized by federal law. In 2020, 17 people were executed in the country.
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