Menu icon
The Marshall Project
Nonprofit journalism about criminal justice
Search
About
Newsletters
Donate
A nonprofit news organization covering the U.S. criminal justice system
Search
Magnifying glass
Local Network
Cleveland
Jackson
Projects
Inside Story
News Inside
Life Inside
Mauled
The Language Project
The Record
The System
Topics
Death Penalty
Immigration
Juvenile Justice
Mental Health
Policing
Politics and Reform
Race
About
About Us
Local Network
The Marshall Project Inside
News & Awards
Impact
People
Supporters
Jobs
Newsletters
Events
Donate
Feedback?
Arrow
support@themarshallproject.org
Death Penalty
KADIR VAN LOHUIZEN/NOOR
Closing Argument
New Execution Methods, Old Problems
What the first execution by nitrogen in the U.S. says about capital punishment.
Death Sentences
January 18
Vomiting, Seizures, Stroke: What Could Happen in the First Nitrogen Execution in the U.S.
A doctor on what’s new — and what isn’t — about the latest death penalty experiment.
By
Maurice Chammah
Feature
December 18
The Mercy Workers, Illustrated
Her mission was to save him from death row — by telling the story of his life.
Reported and written by
Maurice Chammah
Illustrated by
Jackie Roche
Development by
Katie Park
Closing Argument
October 14, 2023
A Chaotic Moment For The Death Penalty
Political and legal opinions are shifting on mental illness and capital punishment, but those on death row may be left behind.
By
Jamiles Lartey
Death Sentences
September 15
He’s Facing Execution For His Daughter’s Death. Now, Science Suggests It Was An Accident.
Robert Roberson is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to examine “shaken baby syndrome” and the state of forensic science.
By
Maurice Chammah
Feature
August 31
When Wizards and Orcs Came to Death Row
For men awaiting execution in Texas, illicit games of Dungeons & Dragons became a lifeline.
By
Keri Blakinger
Q&A
May 31, 2023
Stephen Breyer Wants the Supreme Court to Avoid ‘Self-inflicted’ Wounds
The retired justice spoke with The Marshall Project on abortion, the death penalty and the court’s reputation.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Closing Argument
April 22, 2023
How the Death Penalty Is Returning to Presidential Politics
Trump and DeSantis want to make it easier to execute people, and Biden could face a rush of clemency requests from federal death row.
By
Maurice Chammah
Violation
March 29, 2023
‘Bad Seed’: Two Generations, Two Terrible Crimes
Part Two of the “Violation” podcast explores whether violence runs in families and what should happen to kids who commit murder.
By
Beth Schwartzapfel
Feature
March 2
The Mercy Workers
For three decades, a little-known group of “mitigation specialists” has helped save death-penalty defendants by documenting their childhood traumas. A rare look inside one case.
By
Maurice Chammah