when was the death penalty abolished in the us
1 The death penalty is a legal punishment in 31 US states. 2  Nineteen US states have abolished the death penalty, the most recent was Nebraska in May 2015. 3  Since 1976 Texas has carried out the most executions (526), followed by Oklahoma (112) and Virginia (110). Nineteen US states have abolished the death penalty, the most recent was Nebraska in May 2015. 2  Since 1976 Texas has carried out the most executions (526), followed by Oklahoma (112) and Virginia (110). 3  At the beginning of 2015, there were 3,019 inmates on death row in the US, of whom 56 were women.