Policy & Advocacy
Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty Info Sheet
Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty Info Sheet
The USCCB urges U.S. Catholics to join a coordinated campaign to end the death penalty, arguing it is morally problematic, deeply flawed in practice, and unnecessary when the state can protect society by other means.
Background and case for action
- Recent Vatican and episcopal teachings, including Pope John Paul II’s encyclical The Gospel of Life, call for an end to capital punishment when nonlethal means suffice.
- The Church’s stance emphasizes the dignity of every human life, the need to comfort victims, and the moral incoherence of teaching respect for life while the state executes people.
Key facts about the death penalty in the U.S.
- Roughly 3,500 people on death row across 38 jurisdictions; California holds the largest share.
- Over 115 death-row exonerations since 1973, highlighting wrongful convictions.
- Supreme Court rulings have restricted executions for persons with intellectual disability and juvenile offenders; juries must determine death sentences.
- Twelve states have abolished the death penalty; several others have no recent executions or are actively considering abolition.
Catholic teaching and moral reasoning
- Catholic teaching recognizes the state’s traditional right to use capital punishment but now insists on forgoing it when safer alternatives exist.
- The Catechism, papal teaching, and U.S. bishops argue that modern systems can protect society without definitive denial of reform and that abandoning the death penalty is a vital witness to a culture of life.
Public attitudes and influence of Church teaching
- Catholic support for capital punishment has declined from historical levels; surveys show less than half of Catholics now support it.
- A majority of Catholics report Church teaching influences their view; regular Mass attendees are more likely to oppose the death penalty.
Resources and practical steps
- The USCCB is building parish- and diocesan-level materials: educational resources, papal and episcopal statements, victims’ testimonies, amicus briefs, videos, and liturgical/preaching aids.
- Recommended actions: pray for victims and the condemned, learn Church teaching and state policies, educate parish communities, and contact elected officials to advocate curtailing or abolishing the death penalty.