Oregon still has the death penalty on paper, but it is not being used and there is no one left to execute. Capital punishment remains written into the state constitution, yet every person previously sentenced to death has had that sentence commuted, the execution chamber has been dismantled, and successive governors have refused to sign death warrants. The practical answer to whether Oregon has the death penalty is: legally yes, functionally no.
No Death Row and an Active Moratorium
Oregon currently has zero people on death row. In December 2022, Governor Kate Brown used her clemency power to commute the sentences of all 17 people then facing execution, converting each one to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The commutations took effect on December 14, 2022, and Brown also ordered the Department of Corrections to tear down the execution chamber at the Oregon State Penitentiary.1Governor’s Office. Governor Kate Brown Commutes Oregon’s Death Row
The moratorium itself is older than the commutations. Governor John Kitzhaber started it in November 2011 when he blocked the scheduled execution of Gary Haugen and announced he would allow no further executions during his time in office. Kitzhaber called the system “neither fair nor just” but did not commute any sentences or push for legislative repeal. Brown kept the moratorium in place through her entire tenure, and Governor Tina Kotek, who took office in January 2023, has done the same.
No one has actually been executed in Oregon since 1997, when Douglas Franklin Wright was put to death. He was one of only two people executed in the state since 1976. Because the moratorium is an executive policy rather than a law, a future governor could lift it, but doing so would require rebuilding execution infrastructure from scratch.
Why It’s Still on the Books
Oregon’s death penalty is anchored in Article I, Section 40 of the state constitution, which says the penalty for aggravated murder “shall be death upon unanimous affirmative jury findings as provided by law and otherwise shall be life imprisonment.”2FindLaw. Oregon Constitution Art. I 40 – Penalty for Aggravated Murder That provision overrides the state constitution’s own ban on cruel and unusual punishment and was enacted directly by voters, which means courts cannot strike it down the way they could an ordinary statute.
The practical consequence: the legislature cannot repeal the death penalty by passing a bill. Permanent removal requires a constitutional amendment, which in Oregon means either a legislative referral approved by voters or a citizen-initiated ballot measure. Until that happens, the legal framework stays in place no matter how many governors decline to use it.
Oregon voters have reversed themselves on capital punishment repeatedly. They abolished it in 1914, reinstated it in 1920, abolished it again in 1964, reinstated it in 1978, and reaffirmed reinstatement by ballot in 1984. That 1984 vote produced the constitutional language still in effect.
What Could Still Trigger a Death Sentence
Only one crime in Oregon is death-eligible: aggravated murder. Senate Bill 1013, passed in 2019, sharply narrowed what counts.3Oregon State Legislature. SB1013 2019 Regular Session Under the current version of ORS 163.095, aggravated murder is limited to five scenarios:4Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 163.095 – “Aggravated Murder” Defined
- Premeditated killing of two or more people with intent to intimidate a civilian population, influence government policy through coercion, or affect government conduct through destruction, murder, kidnapping, or aircraft piracy.
- Premeditated, intentional murder of a person under 14 years of age.
- Killing someone while confined in a correctional facility, where the defendant already has a prior qualifying homicide conviction.
- Premeditated, intentional murder of a police officer related to the officer’s official duties.
- Premeditated, intentional murder of a correctional, parole, or probation officer related to the victim’s official duties.
Many killings that previously qualified as aggravated murder now fall under first-degree murder, which carries a mandatory minimum of 30 years but no possibility of a death sentence.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 163.107 – Murder in the First Degree
How a Death Sentence Would Have to Be Imposed
A conviction for aggravated murder triggers a separate sentencing proceeding before the same jury, with three possible outcomes: death, life without release, or life with a minimum term of 30 years. The jury must answer three questions. First, whether the defendant acted deliberately with a reasonable expectation that death would result. Second, if the evidence raises it, whether the defendant’s actions were an unreasonable response to provocation by the victim. Third, whether the defendant should receive a death sentence.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 163.150 – Sentencing for Aggravated Murder
The state must prove the first two issues beyond a reasonable doubt, and the jury must be unanimous on every “yes.” If even one juror believes the defendant should not die, the answer to the third question must be “no.” Combined with the narrowed definition of aggravated murder, this unanimity requirement means capital sentences are now rare at the charging stage and rarer still at the verdict.
Whether an Execution Could Actually Be Carried Out
Oregon law authorizes only one method of execution. ORS 137.473 requires lethal injection using a three-drug protocol: an ultra-short-acting barbiturate, a chemical paralytic agent, and potassium chloride or an equally effective substance. Executions must take place inside a Department of Corrections institution designated by the Director.7Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 137.473 – Means of Inflicting Death; Place and Procedures; Acquisition of Lethal Substance
That designated facility no longer exists. The execution chamber at the Oregon State Penitentiary was dismantled after Brown’s 2022 commutations, so even if a death sentence were handed down tomorrow and a future governor signed the warrant, the state would have to rebuild the physical infrastructure before carrying it out.1Governor’s Office. Governor Kate Brown Commutes Oregon’s Death Row
What Could Change the Answer Permanently
Senate Joint Resolution 16, introduced in the 2025 legislative session, proposes a constitutional amendment that would prohibit the death penalty outright. If the legislature passes it, the question goes to voters at the next regular general election.8Oregon State Legislature. SJR16 2025 Regular Session
A statewide vote is the only route to a permanent answer. Executive moratoriums last only as long as the sitting governor keeps them, and any ordinary statute leaves Article I, Section 40 untouched. Until voters amend the constitution, Oregon’s death penalty stays where it is now: available in theory, dormant in practice.