The death chamber in Florida was quiet on December 19, 2025. Frank Athen Walls, 58, was strapped down for the killing of Tina Marie Cribbs. This was decades after the 1995 crime. It was the last time the state of Florida used lethal injection in 2025. People think the death penalty is fading away in America. Honestly? It’s not that simple.
2025 was a violent year for the legal system. It saw the highest number of executions in sixteen years.
While many states are moving toward abolition, a small handful of others are accelerating. You’ve got Florida, Texas, and Alabama leading the charge. They aren't just sticking to the old ways. They're trying new things, like nitrogen gas. It’s a strange, bifurcated reality where half the country is done with the practice and the other half is doubling down.
The Current State of Play in 2026
Right now, we are in a bit of a mid-January lull. No one has been put to death in the first two weeks of 2026. But the calendar is already filling up fast.
Texas has the first date on the books. Charles Victor Thompson is scheduled to die on January 28, 2026. He’s 55 years old. He has been in the system since 1999 for a double murder in Houston. If it goes through, he’ll be the first of many this year.
Florida isn't far behind. Governor Ron DeSantis just signed a warrant for Ronald Palmer Heath. His date is February 10, 2026. Heath was convicted of killing a traveling salesman during a robbery. It's a pattern we see a lot: crimes from the 80s and 90s finally reaching the end of the line.
Who is on the 2026 Schedule?
The list for the next few months is pretty grim. It’s mostly the same states over and over.
- January 28: Charles Victor Thompson (Texas)
- February 10: Ronald Heath (Florida)
- February 12: Kendrick Simpson (Oklahoma)
- March 11: Cedric Ricks (Texas)
- April 30: James Broadnax (Texas)
Oklahoma is also back in the mix with Kendrick Simpson. He’s facing a February 12 date. You might remember Oklahoma had a lot of trouble with botched injections a few years back. They took a break, but they're definitely back to a regular schedule now.
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What Really Happened in 2025?
To understand why the most recent executions in the US matter, you have to look at the surge that happened last year.
Twenty-eight men were executed in 2025. That’s a huge jump. For a while, the numbers were dropping. In 2024, they were much lower. What changed? Basically, a combination of political will and the Supreme Court's refusal to step in at the last minute.
Florida was a powerhouse of activity. They executed Frank Walls, Mark Geralds, and Bryan Jennings all within the final two months of the year. It felt like a conveyor belt. Many of these men had been on death row for over thirty years.
The Nitrogen Gas Experiment
Alabama did something different. They’ve started using nitrogen hypoxia.
In late 2025, they executed Anthony Todd Boyd and Geoffrey Todd West using this method. It involves a mask and pure nitrogen. No oxygen. The state says it's humane. Critics say it's an uncontrolled experiment on humans. You've got doctors on both sides arguing about whether the person feels like they're suffocating.
It’s a messy debate. But because states can’t get the "good" lethal injection drugs anymore—pharmacy companies don't want the bad PR—they are getting creative.
The Robert Roberson Case: A Close Call
Not everyone who gets a date actually dies.
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Robert Roberson was supposed to be executed in Texas on October 16, 2025. It was a huge news story. He was convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki, back in 2002. The case was built on "shaken baby syndrome."
The thing is, the science behind shaken baby syndrome has changed a lot since 2002. A lot of experts now say Nikki might have died from undiagnosed pneumonia and a high fever. At the very last second, the Texas Supreme Court issued a stay. It was a rare moment where the system hit the brakes.
His case is still in limbo here in 2026. It highlights the biggest fear people have: what if we get it wrong?
Why the Federal Government is Different
If you’re looking at federal executions, the story is totally different.
There hasn't been a federal execution since January 16, 2021, when Dustin Higgs was put to death. That was right at the end of the Trump administration. When Biden took over, his Attorney General, Merrick Garland, put a moratorium on the whole thing.
But things changed again recently. In February 2025, the moratorium was lifted. The federal government is legally allowed to start executions again.
As of January 2026, there are about 60 people on federal death row. We haven't seen a date set yet for this year, but the legal pathway is clear. The "pause" button has been un-pressed.
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The Realities of Modern Death Row
Most people think death row is a quick process. It’s not.
The average time between sentencing and execution is now nearly 25 years. Look at Harold Nichols in Tennessee. He was executed in December 2025 for a crime committed in 1988. He was 64 years old.
By the time these men reach the chamber, they are often old and sick. It’s a weird scene. You have guards helping an elderly man with a walker into a room to kill him. It raises a lot of questions about the point of it all. Is it still justice if the person is totally different than the 20-year-old who committed the crime?
Public Opinion is Splitting
Gallup polls from late 2025 show that support for the death penalty is at a 50-year low. Only about 52% of Americans still support it for murder.
But if you live in Texas or Florida, those numbers don't seem to reflect local politics. The governors there see "law and order" as a winning ticket. They aren't slowing down because a poll in New York says people are uncomfortable.
Practical Steps to Stay Informed
If you want to track the most recent executions in the US without the bias, here is how to do it.
- Check the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) regularly. They are the gold standard for data. They list every scheduled date and every stay.
- Follow local reporters in Huntsville, Texas. That’s where the Texas executions happen. Local news often gets the "final meal" and "last words" details that national news misses.
- Read the "stays of execution" filings. If an execution is stopped, read why. It usually tells you about a new piece of DNA evidence or a change in the law.
The next few months will be busy. With Charles Thompson and Ronald Heath coming up in the next few weeks, the debate is going to heat up again. Whether you think it’s justice or a relic of the past, the machinery of the state is clearly back in high gear for 2026.
Keep an eye on the courts in the final 48 hours before January 28. That's usually when the real drama happens.