Trump Reintroduces Firing Squads as Pope Leo XIV Condemns Death Penalty

On April 24, 2026 the U.S. Department of Justice announced that firing squads will be a federally authorized execution method and that the lethal-injection protocol using pentobarbital is reinstated. Hours later Pope Leo XIV issued a prerecorded video to DePaul University, condemning the death penalty as an attack on human dignity.

NPRWhite House to bring back firing squads as Pope Leo XIV calls for U.S. death penalty to be abolishedNewsweek

President Joe Biden halted executions and withdrew pentobarbital after a review flagged pain risks. President Donald Trump’s first term ended a 20-year moratorium, carrying out 13 executions. In his final days, Biden commuted 37 death-row sentences, leaving three inmates—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers. Illinois abolished the death penalty in 2011 after a 2000 moratorium by Governor George Ryan.

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Federal death-row now holds three inmates. The Justice Department has opened death-penalty cases against 44 defendants. Executions rose from 25 in 2024 to 47 in 2025, with Florida accounting for 19. Five states—Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah—already permit firing squads. The DOJ calls pentobarbital the “gold standard” of lethal-injection drugs.

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Justice Department said the policy restores its “solemn duty to seek, obtain, and implement lawful capital sentences,” and will “clear the way for the Department to carry out executions once death-sentenced inmates have exhausted their appeals.” It also claims pentobarbital “renders a prisoner unconscious rapidly enough to prevent pain.” Pope Leo XIV reiterated that Catholic teaching deems the death penalty inadmissible because it attacks the inviolability and dignity of the person, and pledged support for abolition advocates worldwide.

White House to bring back firing squads as Pope Leo XIV calls for U.S. death penalty to be abolishedNPRNewsweek

Catholic bishops filed an amicus brief opposing the administration’s stance on birthright citizenship and reaffirming opposition to capital punishment. Pope Leo’s condemnation of executions in Iran and his denunciation of “the taking of people’s lives” clash with President Donald Trump’s remark that he is “not a big fan” of the pontiff, calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy.” The exchange underscores a widening Vatican-White House rift over human-rights policy.

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• “We affirm that the dignity of the person is not lost even after very serious crimes are committed,” — Pope Leo XIV, Pontiff

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• “The right to life is the very foundation of every other human right,” — Pope Leo XIV, Pontiff

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• “restore its solemn duty to seek, obtain, and implement lawful capital sentences—clearing the way for the Department to carry out executions once death-sentenced inmates have exhausted their appeals.” — Department of Justice, Statement

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Justice Department will implement firing squads and resume pentobarbital injections in pending federal cases. Pope Leo has pledged ongoing advocacy for abolition, urging supporters to “work for the same just cause” and to uphold the dignity of every person.

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