The Department of Justice announced Friday that it is resurrecting the use of firing squads and electric chairs for certain federal death penalty cases, marking a sharp shift in execution policy under the Trump administration. The move also includes “readopting” lethal injection protocols that were used during President Trump’s first term.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche framed the decision as a return to law-and-order principles, saying the prior administration had “failed in its duty to protect the American people by refusing to pursue and carry out the ultimate punishment against the most dangerous criminals, including terrorists, child murderers, and cop killers.” The DOJ statement argued that expanding execution methods is “critical to deterring the most barbaric crimes, delivering justice for victims, and providing long-overdue closure to surviving loved ones.”
On Friday, the department directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to update its execution protocols to include firing squads alongside lethal injection. A newly released DOJ report also advocates for bringing back electrocution and the use of nitrogen gas, a method employed in Alabama in 2024. The federal death row facility in Terre Haute, Indiana, which housed 13 executions by lethal injection of pentobarbital during Trump’s first term, will be central to these renewed efforts.
The policy reversal comes after former Attorney General Merrick Garland imposed a moratorium on federal executions in 2021, two years after Trump’s DOJ ended a two-decade hiatus on capital punishment. Former President Joe Biden later commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates, leaving only three men: Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, white supremacist mass shooter Dylann Roof, and Tree of Life Synagogue shooter Robert Bowers.
Five states currently authorize execution by firing squad as a backup to lethal injection: South Carolina, Idaho, Utah, Mississippi, and Oklahoma. South Carolina adopted the method most recently in 2021. The DOJ’s move signals a potential alignment with state-level practices that have faced legal and ethical scrutiny.
President Trump has publicly floated the use of firing squads in a political context. During an interview with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, Trump suggested putting former Representative Liz Cheney before a rifle squad, saying, “Let’s see how she feels about it when the guns are trained on her face.” The remark drew widespread condemnation, though Trump’s campaign defended it as a critique of warmongering politicians.
The DOJ’s announcement is likely to reignite debates over capital punishment, particularly regarding methods some critics consider cruel and unusual. The department’s report emphasizes pentobarbital as a preferred drug for lethal injection, despite ongoing shortages and legal battles over its sourcing. As the administration pushes forward, the federal death penalty remains a deeply polarizing issue, with implications for Ohio’s informal moratorium and broader national policy.
This development also intersects with broader Trump administration priorities, including a historic defense spending request and ongoing tensions with the Federal Reserve. The DOJ’s aggressive stance on executions underscores a return to hardline criminal justice policies that defined the first Trump term.
