50 years of fighting capital punishment
50 years ago, Simons Muirhead Burton first began providing free legal representation to people on death row. This marked the beginning of what would become The Death Penalty Project.
When this work began in the 1970s, only 20 countries had abolished the death penalty. Today, that number stands at 125. But the fight is far from over. More than 28,000 people are estimated to be on death row worldwide, and executions are on the rise.
We are death penalty experts, taking action alongside our partners for criminal justice reform where the death penalty and its legacy still exists.
Make a donation to our Anniversary Fund today to support our work providing free representation to people on death row, mounting direct legal challenges to capital punishment and engaging with policymakers to build fair and effectivecriminal justice systems.
Five Conversations
To mark 50 years of fighting the death penalty, our Five Conversations film series traces the moments, clients and partnerships that have shaped our history and continue to inform our work as we look to the future. Watch all of the films today.
Watch our series here