Oregon’s death row is empty. The state currently holds no one under a death sentence, the housing unit at Oregon State Penitentiary that once isolated condemned prisoners has been dissolved, and the execution chamber itself has been dismantled.1Oregon.gov. Governor Kate Brown Commutes Oregon’s Death Row Capital punishment is still technically authorized under Oregon law, but a governor-imposed moratorium on executions has been in place since 2011, and no one has been executed in the state since 1997.2Oregon Department of Corrections. Oregon Death Penalty
How Oregon Got to Zero
Three separate actions over roughly a decade emptied the row.
The first was the moratorium. In November 2011, Governor John Kitzhaber issued a reprieve for Gary Haugen, whose execution was approaching, and extended it to cover every death sentence for the rest of his time in office. Kitzhaber said he could not “participate once again in something I believe to be morally wrong,” and noted that both modern Oregon executions had involved prisoners who waived their appeals.3Oregon.gov. Governor Kitzhaber Issues Reprieve – Calls for Action on Capital Punishment The reprieve did not change any law. Prosecutors could still seek death, judges could still impose it, and existing death sentences stayed on the books. It simply guaranteed that no governor’s signature would authorize an execution. Governor Kate Brown maintained that position throughout her tenure, and Governor Tina Kotek, who took office in January 2023, has publicly committed to keeping the moratorium in place.
The second was closing the housing unit itself. In May 2020, the Oregon Department of Corrections dissolved the death row unit at Oregon State Penitentiary, where 27 men were then living in a 40-cell block.2Oregon Department of Corrections. Oregon Death Penalty DOC Director Colette Peters described the decision as a practical move to cut costs and reduce the agency’s use of solitary confinement. The men were reassigned to general population or special housing across the state’s maximum-security prisons based on individual risk assessments. Their death sentences remained in force; only the automatic isolation ended.
The third action removed the sentences themselves. On December 13, 2022, with weeks left in her final term, Governor Brown used her clemency power under Article V, Section 14 of the Oregon Constitution to commute the death sentences of all 17 people still condemned in Oregon. Every sentence became life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Brown called the death penalty “both dysfunctional and immoral.”1Oregon.gov. Governor Kate Brown Commutes Oregon’s Death Row A commutation changes the punishment but does not erase the underlying conviction, so all 17 remain convicted of aggravated murder and will spend the rest of their lives in prison. The same month, Brown ordered the Department of Corrections to dismantle the execution chamber at the penitentiary, stripping it of its specialized equipment.
What Crimes Could Still Trigger a Death Sentence
Even with no one currently sentenced to death, Oregon law still defines a category of murder for which death remains an authorized punishment. In 2019, the legislature sharply narrowed that category through Senate Bill 1013, which rewrote the definition of “aggravated murder” under ORS 163.095.4Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Senate Bill 1013 Most killings that previously qualified were reclassified as first-degree murder, which carries life imprisonment but not death.
Under the current statute, aggravated murder is limited to four circumstances:5Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 163
- Terrorism: the intentional, 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 or violence.
- Killing while confined in a correctional facility after a prior conviction for a homicide that would qualify as aggravated murder or first-degree murder.
- Premeditated, intentional murder of a child under 14.
- Premeditated, intentional murder of a police officer or corrections staff member related to their official duties.
SB 1013 also eliminated “future dangerousness” as a factor juries could weigh at sentencing and required the state to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a defendant should receive a death sentence. These changes applied only to future cases; people already sentenced to death under the old, broader statute were not automatically resentenced, though all have since had their sentences commuted.
Could Oregon Start Executing People Again?
In theory, yes. The moratorium is a policy choice, not a law. A future governor could decline to extend it and begin signing death warrants, and a prosecutor could seek a death sentence in a case that fits the narrowed aggravated murder definition. The statutory machinery still exists.
What has changed is that the practical infrastructure does not. The execution chamber is gone. No one currently holds a death sentence. Any resumption would require building both the physical capacity and a fresh case through trial and appeal.
The gap between law and practice may close. In the 2025 legislative session, lawmakers introduced Senate Joint Resolution 16, a proposed constitutional amendment to prohibit the death penalty in Oregon outright. If the legislature passes the resolution, the question goes to voters at the next regular general election.6Oregon State Legislature. SJR16 2025 Regular Session Oregon has historically settled capital punishment questions at the ballot box, with voters abolishing it in 1914 and 1964 and reinstating it in 1920, 1978, and 1984.
Federal Charges Are a Separate Matter
Nothing Oregon has done affects federal capital prosecutions. The federal government retains independent authority to seek the death penalty for federal crimes committed anywhere in the country, including inside Oregon. Federal capital offenses such as terrorism, certain large-scale drug offenses resulting in death, and specific categories of murder operate under their own sentencing framework. A federal prosecutor could pursue a death sentence in federal court in Oregon regardless of state law, the governor’s moratorium, or any future state constitutional amendment.