Justice Department to reinstate the federal death penalty

William Barr.
(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The Justice Department has announced that the federal death penalty will be reinstated more than 15 years after the last federal execution.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons has, at Attorney General William Barr's direction, scheduled executions for five death-row inmates convicted of murder for December and January, and additional federal executions will be later scheduled, the Justice Department said in a statement. The last federal execution took place in 2003, NBC News reports.

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.