US DOJ Expands Execution Toolkit with Firing Squads and Pentobarbital

The Justice Department reauthorized pentobarbital for federal executions and said firing squads and additional methods could be added, part of a broader push to revive the federal death penalty. A 48-page report urges the Bureau of Prisons to consider relocating federal death row to states that permit more methods, speed up appeals, and tighten clemency limits, while proposing to broaden eligible crimes. The plan also seeks regulatory paths to preserve the use of lethal drugs amid legal and logistical hurdles, prompting criticism from lawmakers like Sen. Durbin who view the moves as regressive.