Story perspectives

DOJ adds firing squads, gas, electrocution to federal executions

4/24/2026

Summary

Story summary

The Justice Department announced it will add firing squads, electrocution and nitrogen gas to execution methods.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to reinstate lethal injection with pentobarbital.
A DOJ report criticized the Biden administration for halting executions and drug shortages, recommending electrocution and lethal gas.
The department will seek new federal death sentences, authorizing investigations of nine defendants, including three alleged MS-13 members.

History

Historical Context

The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, signed by President Ronald Reagan on November 18, restored the federal death penalty and created the Office of National Drug Control Policy as a central “drug-free America” initiative. It projected a $6.5 billion federal drug-control budget for fiscal 1989, laying groundwork for later debates over expanding execution methods.

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Story summary

The Justice Department announced it will add firing squads, electrocution and nitrogen gas to execution methods.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to reinstate lethal injection with pentobarbital.
A DOJ report criticized the Biden administration for halting executions and drug shortages, recommending electrocution and lethal gas.
The department will seek new federal death sentences, authorizing investigations of nine defendants, including three alleged MS-13 members.

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