Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, is calling on the state legislature to abolish the death penalty, citing lengthy delays between sentencing and execution and saying he no longer believes capital punishment deters murder. DeWine, who helped craft Ohio’s modern death-penalty statute as a state legislator in the early 1980s, has made the case as he enters the final months of his term, which ends in January 2027.
Gov. Mike DeWine has urged Ohio lawmakers to repeal the state’s death penalty, arguing that the system’s long appellate timeline and other practical and moral concerns have undermined any deterrent effect.
DeWine has pointed to the state’s most recent executions as evidence of the delay. He said the elapsed time between sentencing and execution for Ohio’s last 10 executions ranged from about 14 to 32 years, averaging roughly 21 years—an interval he argues makes it difficult to claim capital punishment deters murder in practice.
He also cited the strain on the people tasked with carrying out executions, saying former officials have described lasting psychological effects from participating in the process.
DeWine has not committed to commuting the sentences of people currently on Ohio’s death row, instead emphasizing his push to prompt legislative action on repeal first. Ohio has not carried out an execution since 2018, and DeWine has repeatedly delayed scheduled executions during his time as governor, citing the state’s inability to obtain the drugs used for lethal injection.
