Elizabeth Bruenig on witnessing executions and opposing capital punishment

According to Amnesty International, 15 countries used the death penalty in 2024. The United States was one of those countries. Capital punishment is illegal in 23 states and isn’t used in some of the states where it is legal. But the United States still executed 25 people last year.

We’ve surpassed that number already in 2025.

Capital punishment can be a contentious topic. And it’s a debate that has been reignited in recent weeks — President Donald Trump has said he wants to seek the death penalty for all murder cases in Washington, DC.

But amidst all the statistics and lofty arguments for and against, it’s important to remember that capital punishment affects real people. It impacts both the people sentenced to death, and the families who’ve lost loved ones to violence.

This hour, we’re talking about what the death penalty means to the human beings impacted by it.

Staff Writer at The Atlantic and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Elizabeth Bruenig, has seen the impact of the death penalty firsthand. She’s also lost a family member to violence. While many journalists cover capital punishment, fewer are applying to attend the executions of people on death row.

In a deeply personal conversation, Khalilah Brown-Dean talks with Bruenig about her coverage of capital punishment. Her recent cover story in The Atlantic is, 'Witness: Inside America's Death Chambers - What Years of witnessing executions taught me about sin, mercy and the possibility of redemption.'

Bruenig describes her own family tragedy, the realities of death by lethal injection, and why her feelings about capital punishment have changed over time. Plus, the pair describe the complex emotions victims’ families grapple with in the aftermath of tragedy.

GUEST:

• Elizabeth Bruenig: Staff writer at The Atlantic

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.