"I finally received justice. But the years I lost will never come back. Now, I just want to spend the rest of my life with my family."
Photo credit: Mosfiqur Rahman Johan.
We are ending the death penalty and its legacy. End of sentence.
The death penalty is a cruel and inhuman punishment. It discriminates against the most marginalised members of society. There is also no perfect justice system: wrongful convictions and miscarriages of justice happen the world over. This means innocent people are sentenced to death and executed wherever capital punishment exists.
We are death penalty experts, taking action to protect the rights of people facing death sentences and promote fair and effective criminal justice systems.
Earl Pratt and Ivan Morgan spent 14 years on death row in Jamaica. Their case established a legal precedent which has protected hundreds of people in the Caribbean from execution.
“They came and weighed me to determine how much weight to put on the gallows for me to hang.”
Earl & Ivan's story
Joshua was forced to undergo a mock execution whilst living under a death sentence in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
“Joshua is working hard to build himself up again physically and mentally after more than 8 years in Congolese prisons.”
Joshua's story
The Death Penalty Project’s Co-Executive Directors Saul Lehrfreund and Parvais Jabbar Appointed to the House of Lords
The Death Penalty Project’s Co-Founders and Co-Executive Directors, Saul Lehrfreund MBE and Parvais Jabbar MBE, have been appointed to the House of Lords as life peers. Their appointments recognise more than three decades of leadership and advocacy dedicated to defending the rights of some of the world's most marginalised people, advancing access to justice and challenging the use of the…
Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be executed in the United Kingdom, granted a posthumous pardon
Ruth Ellis was the last woman to be executed in Britain. In 1955, she was hanged at Holloway Prison after being convicted of the murder of her partner, David Blakely. Just days before the 71st anniversary of her execution on 13 July 2026, the King has accepted the Government's advice to grant her a posthumous conditional pardon.
Poor legal representation driving unsafe and unjust death sentences in Bangladesh
New research, commissioned by The Death Penalty Project and conducted by the University of Dhaka, exposes systemic failures in the effectiveness and quality of legal representation in capital cases – meaning unjust, unsafe and potentially irreversible outcomes are inevitable for those facing the death penalty in Bangladesh.
Mental health assessments “long overdue” in Trinidad and Tobago death penalty cases
After decades of subjecting individuals with mental illness, developmental and intellectual disabilities to the mandatory death sentence, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council has directed that Trinidad and Tobago must introduce “long overdue” mental health assessments for defendants accused of serious crimes.
British Citizen Returned to the UK After 18 Months Living Under a Sentence of Death in the DRC
For 18 months, British citizen Youssouf Ezangi was detained under a sentence of death in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He had faced serious human rights violations. In March 2026, Mr Ezangi was returned from the DRC to a prison in the United Kingdom.
In 2025, we provided direct representation or legal assistance to 20 individuals facing the death penalty. This included working with 13 British nationals facing death sentences abroad. Three people ultimately avoided a death sentence, and one person had their death sentence overturned. We also held high level engagements with policymakers and diplomatic allies in eight countries, published two reports exploring…
New research finds that the death penalty can deepen trauma for victims and their families
A new report published by The Death Penalty Project and the University of Oxford’s Death Penalty Research Unit reveals that capital punishment systems can inflict further trauma on victims, rather than providing for their complex and varied needs.
From Exoneration to Execution: Japan fails to learn from historic miscarriage of justice case
In a major blow to Japan’s human rights record, the country has resumed executions after nearly three years, putting Takahiro Shiraishi to death on Friday, June 27, 2025. This marked the end of a 2-year, 11-month hiatus – the longest pause since the Ministry of Justice began publicly disclosing the names and crimes of death row inmates in 2007. With…
High Court of Trinidad and Tobago criticises the State for “spitting in the face of the courts” over refusal to carry out fair death penalty resentencing
In 1993, approximately 60 people on death row in Trinidad and Tobago had their death sentences commuted to natural life imprisonment, or a period of 75 years. These mass commutations were prompted by the landmark ruling in Pratt & Morgan in which the courts limited the time a person can be kept under a sentence of death in the Caribbean.…
Oral Statement to the 58th Session of the Human Rights Council
The Death Penalty Project, in partnership with the Death Penalty Research Unit at the University of Oxford, today delivered this joint oral statement to the 58th Session of the Human Rights Council: Thank you, Mr President. For three decades, we have initiated or supported legal challenges to limit the scope and application of the death penalty in over 30 countries.…
Zimbabwe takes historic decision to abolish the death penalty
Today, the President of Zimbabwe has signed the Death Penalty Abolition Act (2024), removing the death penalty in law, following approval by the Senate of the Bill introducing abolition. This is a significant step, recognising the death penalty as an affront to dignity and the right to life. Zimbabwe has not carried out any death sentences for nearly two decades,…
Globally, executions are on the rise. This year, we’re building stronger justice systems and momentum for abolition in more than 20 countries. We need your support to protect the rights of people facing death sentences. Find out how you can get involved:
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