maryland – United Yam

Texas boys school establishes policy to destroy smartphones

unitedyam October 4, 2025

Boys swing on a rope during recess at Western Academy in Houston, Texas. / Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy

Houston, Texas, Oct 4, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

After years of boys (and their parents) repeatedly ignoring the rules, a private boys school in Houston is taking a novel approach to its smartphone and digital device policy: Bring it to school, and “we will destroy it.”

Western Academy, an independent, liberal arts school that states its goal is to educate young men “in the good, the true, and the beautiful,” has never allowed students to bring electronic devices to school.

In the past, if a boy was caught with a phone or other device at the school or a school-sponsored event, faculty would confiscate the device, which would be returned to the parents only after they had met with headmaster Jason Hebert. He would explain the harms to boys caused by smartphone use and why parents “should not put the phone back into your son’s hands.”

Boys look for toads in a pond during recess. Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy

Under the new policy, which Hebert laid out in a four-page letter to parents last month, after the device is discovered and destroyed, the boy will be suspended. If it happens again, the boy will be automatically expelled.

Along with its singular smartphone policy, the school, which has 230 students in third through eighth grade, takes a unique approach to education. The boys are free to play throughout the park-like, rambling grounds, where they climb and swing from trees, build forts, shoot Nerf guns, and care for (or chase) chickens before and after school and multiple times throughout the school day.

The all-male faculty expects respect and responsibility from the boys at a young age, according to Hebert. The teachers have the boys rise when an adult visits a classroom and encourage parents to let their sons learn to endure hardship and experience natural consequences when they forget their homework or their lunch at home.

Jason Hebert, headmaster at Western Academy in Houston. Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy

A Catholic priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei serves as chaplain to the school, which was founded in 2010, and oversees the religious education program.

The model is popular: Even with middle-school tuition close to $28,000 a year, every grade has extensive waitlists, and the school may start wait-listing boys beginning as early as kindergarten.

At the beginning of each school year, the boys are sorted into one of four houses that compete throughout the year in games such as capture the flag and “The Hero’s Race,” where the boys in each house choose one boy to race across campus, climbing over obstacles and crawling through mud. There is also a poetry recitation competition known as “The Bard.” One mother, Stephanie Creech, told CNA her sons are so happy at the school they “beg to get to school early and to stay afterward to play.”

Hebert sat down with CNA and discussed what brought about the change in the smartphone policy, saying he chose the words in his letter very carefully.

Hebert speaks to the boys on the first day of school as the faculty looks on. Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy

Witnessing the damage

“Smartphones are causing significant, unimagined damage to the students who have them,” Hebert wrote in his letter to parents, “as well as to the sons of those parents who have chosen not to give phones to their sons.”

“The damage these phones have caused to our children,” he told CNA in the interview, “it literally has never been imagined.”

“It’s not just pornography,” Hebert continued. “YouTube actors and other characters just trying to get clicks perform the most shameless actions on video. They just have zero respect for the dignity of their bodies and for life, zero. And these boys want to emulate these people.”

Hebert said the last straw came after a mother called him complaining her son saw a graphic, violent video on a smartphone at a school event.

After that, Hebert said he and the other administrators agreed: “That’s it. We’re done.”

Asked why the school did not just consider automatic expulsion after the first offense rather than the destruction of the devices, Hebert said with a laugh: “To be perfectly candid, I want to destroy the phone. I want to give the boys an opportunity to have life without it.”

He ordered a metal grinder for the purpose.

“Look, I am not an alarmist. I am not reactionary. But the bottom line is this: These devices are not neutral. The research is definitive: They are bad for our kids. I have dealt with hundreds and hundreds of boys over two decades in education and I have yet to see an exception to this,” he said.

Hebert said that over the years, he has noticed a degradation in the quality of the boys’ conversation. “You can’t imagine the level of shamelessness” among some of the boys,” many of whom are generally considered “good kids.”

“This type of behavior is unprecedented in my tenure as an educator, and even as a professional athlete,” he said.

Boys cheer their teammates on as the houses compete in a game of "Thud," in which two boys throw a medicine ball at one another as hard as they can until one of them drops it or gives up. Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy — Boys cheer their teammates on as the houses compete in a game of “Thud,” in which two boys throw a medicine ball at one another as hard as they can until one of them drops it or gives up. Credit: Courtesy of Western Academy

In the early 2000s, before beginning his teaching career, which included teaching at The Heights School in Maryland, he spent one year as a professional football player on practice squads for three NFL teams: the Chargers, the Titans, and the Raiders.

“I never played in a regular-season game. This is what I tell people: I made it to the NFL. I did not make it in the NFL,” he said, laughing.

“Let me make it clear: I was an athlete around some of the most earthy human beings on the planet,” he said. “These men were not ashamed to say anything in the locker room. Yet these same men would have blushed if they heard some of the things these boys talk about! This is so unimaginable. Yet it is becoming more common now, thanks to these devices.”

Parents on board

Asked if he was worried parents would leave over the school’s new policy, Hebert said if parents are not on board with the school’s values, it might be better if they left and one of the many others on the waitlist could take their spot.

In his letter to parents, Hebert wrote that the “school is a true partnership with parents. We say this not for poetic effect, but because it must be so for the authentic growth of your sons to become a reality.”

He told CNA parents should ask themselves: “How valuable is the phone to you? Are you willing to leave this place for it? This place where your son is so abundantly happy? Is your phone worth that? And if it is, well, it’s a mismatch of vision.”

Since the change in policy, however, Hebert said parental response has been “100% positive.”

After hearing about the school’s new policy, a mother whose son graduated from the school several years ago dropped off a financial donation at the front desk recently “for the phone grinder.”

“Everybody just knows it’s right. Parents might be frustrated because saying no to their sons makes their lives harder, but they know it’s right,” he said.

Hebert, a father of seven, said he and his wife do not allow their children to have smartphones or social media. “My children may not know a lot of the lingo or some of the jokes or about all the parties. They’re on the outside, to a degree.”

“And even though that’s a big deal,” he continued, “the alternative overrides that. It’s a bigger deal.”

“The alternative is not worth it,” he said.

“We all want the truth,” he said, “and the truth is these devices are severely hurting kids. I’m not a doomsday guy, but some day these kids will be in charge of society. Think about that.”

unitedyam September 25, 2025

NASA astronaut Nick Hague watches as Robert Schmidle Pitts Aerobatics perform, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, during the Joint Base Andrews Air Show at Joint Base Andrews in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Hague spent 171 days aboard the International Space Station as part of Expedition 72.

Anti-assisted-suicide group says suicide laws expanding throughout U.S. in 2025

unitedyam September 19, 2025

null / Credit: nito/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 19, 2025 / 14:31 pm (CNA).

This week the Patients Rights Action Fund, which works to “end the dangerous and discriminatory public policy of assisted suicide,” provided an update on current assisted suicide legislation in the United States, revealing the deadly practice’s ongoing expansion throughout the country.

In a Sept. 18 webinar, group coalitions director Jessica Rodgers explained that most states that allow assisted suicide follow the “Oregon model,” based on Oregan’s assisted suicide criteria.

The model requires “the patient to be 18 years of age or older, have a terminal illness with six months or less to live, make two or more separate requests with a 15-day waiting period in between, and have two witnesses, which can include heirs to the estate or friends of heirs,” Rodgers said.

“The drugs must be self-administered and all states do require the falsification of the death certificate,” Rodgers said, meaning the states list the underlying condition that qualifies the patient as the cause of death rather than the prescribed drug that ends his or her life.

States attempting expansions to assisted suicide laws

In 2025, new legislation was proposed in a number of states where assisted suicide is legal to advance its polices and limit some of the “safeguards” in place.

A New Jersey bill was proposed that would remove the 15-day waiting period and the second request if the prescriber thinks death will occur within the time period. The bill is still in play and has not been passed yet.

In Maine, a 15-day waiting period was reduced to seven days in cases when it is “in the best interests of the patient” according to the judgment of the prescriber. The legislation was passed and signed by the governor after the original version was amended that would have allowed the whole waiting period to be waived.

A Delaware bill passed that allows for advanced practice nurses to prescribe the medication that kills the patients. The bill has no requirements for an in-person exam or a mental health evaluation.

California proposed a major change that reduced the 15-day waiting period for assisted suicide to only 48 hours. The bill also removes the sunset date, which will keep the End of Life Option Act from expiring. The bill passed last week and is awaiting a signature by the governor.

Some states proposed expansions, but the legislation did not advance. In Washington, D.C., there was a public hearing on a bill that would remove the waiting period in certain cases, but no action was taken.

An Oregon bill was also not advanced that proposed nurse practitioners and physician assistants could prescribe to patients seeking assisted suicide. It also pushed for the waiting period to be reduced from 15 days to 48 hours and would waive the period completely if death is “expected imminently.”

Proposed legislation to legalize assisted suicide

Assisted suicide is legal in 10 states and D.C., but a number of other states have active legislation to legalize it.

In New York a bill to legalize assisted suicide was approved and is awaiting signature by the governor, which she must sign by the end of the year. The bill does not require the patient to be a resident of the state, has no waiting period, and does not require an in-person exam or a mental health evaluation.

In Rhode Island assisting a suicide is a felony, but there is proposed legislation to legalize assisted suicide that would require an in-person evaluation. The bill requires a 15-day waiting period between requests and an additional 48-hour waiting period that begins after the patient submits his or her signed request for the medication.

Nevada does not authorize assisted suicide, but legislation pushing for it proposed advanced practice nurses to be allowed to prescribe the drugs, no in-person exam requirement, only one witness necessarily, and no requirement for the patient to be a resident of the state.

The Nevada legislation does detail that the prescribed drugs would be the cause of death on the certificate rather than the underlying condition.

Legislation in Maryland would not require a mental health evaluation and has a broad meaning for “terminal illness” that can include treatable conditions. The bill has provisions that allow a patient to communicate through someone else “familiar with the individual’s manner of communicating.”

Proposed legislation in Massachusetts also has a broad definition for “terminal illness” that can include treatable conditions. There was a public hearing in Massachusetts in the state Joint Public Health Committee, which then moved the bill to a second committee on the state House side where it is still active.

In New Hampshire, a bill is pushing for no residency requirement, no in-person examination requirement, a broad “terminal illness” definition, and no mental health evaluation. The legislation also proposed a 48-hour waiting period and would allow for advanced practice nurses and physician assistants to prescribe the drugs.

A Tennessee House bill pushing the legalization of assisted suicide primarily follows the Oregon model. It does have a broad meaning for “terminal illness” that can include treatable conditions. On March 4, the first committee hearing was held on the matter, but it was rejected.

In Illinois, a 2025 bill to legalize assisted suicide in the state stalled and will cross over to the 2026 session. The bill had a five-day waiting period, no requirement for mental health evaluation, and broad terminal diagnosis language.

As legislation continues to be proposed and advances in assisted suicide expand, Patients Rights Action Fund highlighted the lack of mental health evaluations across states and noted that waiting periods are being quickly reduced after the initial passing of legislation.

“Ultimately, assisted suicide laws are inherently discriminatory,” Rodgers said on Sept. 18.

“They take a segment of our neighbors and say: ‘You get a lower standard of care than everybody else,’” she said. “The patients that qualify for assisted suicide are already inherently in a more vulnerable state because of their diagnosis and because of the financial costs that they’re facing with health care and the cost of treatment.”

Appellate court protects Baptist association’s autonomy in internal dispute

unitedyam September 17, 2025

null / Credit: Zolnierek/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 17, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

An appellate court in Mississippi dismissed an employment-related lawsuit brought against an agency of the Southern Baptist Convention, ruling that a secular court cannot intervene in matters of religious governance.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi ruled 2-1 to dismiss Will McRaney’s lawsuit against the North American Mission Board (NAMB), which he first brought over eight years ago. The court cited the long-standing church autonomy doctrine.

McRaney was fired from his role in the Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware (BCMD) in 2015 based on a dispute about how to implement the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) between BCMD and NAMB.

According to the court ruling, McRaney was tasked with implementing the SPA’s evangelical objectives to spread the Baptist faith “through church planting and evangelism.” The ruling states the dispute was related to “missionary selection and funding, associational giving, and missionary work requirements.”

The BCMD ultimately voted 37-0 to fire him “because of his wretched leadership,” among other reasons, according to the court. Alternatively, McRaney alleged in his lawsuit that he was fired because NAMB defamed him by spreading “disparaging falsehoods.”

The three-judge panel did not rule on the merits of the dispute, but rather a majority found that resolving the claims would require the court “to decide matters of faith and doctrine,” which the courts do not have the authority to do because religious bodies have autonomy when handling such matters based on Supreme Court precedent related to the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion.

“The church is constitutionally protected against all judicial intrusion into its ecclesiastical affairs — even brief and momentary ones,” the court ruled.

“Can a secular court determine whether NAMB’s conduct was the ‘proximate cause’ of BCMD’s decision to terminate McRaney, without unlawfully intruding on a religious organization’s internal management decisions?” the judges wrote.

“And can a secular court decide it was ‘false’ that McRaney’s leadership lacked Christlike character?” they continued. “To ask these questions is to answer them: no. The SPA is not a mere civil contract; it is ‘an inherently religious document’ that is ‘steeped in religious doctrine.’”

Hiram Sasser, the executive general counsel for First Liberty Institute, which helped provide legal counsel to NAMB, said in a statement that the court’s ruling is consistent with the First Amendment.

“The First Amendment prohibits the government from interfering with the autonomy of religious organizations and the church,” Sasser said. “No court should be able to tell a church who it must hire to preach their beliefs, teach their faith, or carry out their mission.”

Judge Irma Carrillo Ramirez dissented from the court’s majority, stating: “His secular claims against a third-party organization do not implicate matters of church government or of faith and doctrine.”

McRaney told Baptist News Global that he intends to petition the court for an “en banc” hearing, which would require the entirety of the appellate court to be present for a hearing. He told the outlet that NAMB “fooled the courts” and said the Southern Baptist Convention is “not a church” and he wasn’t employed by NAMB, which means it is not an internal church matter.

In 2023, a Texas judge dismissed a civil lawsuit from a Carmelite monastery against Fort Worth Bishop Michael Olson on similar grounds. The dispute was over a diocesan investigation into an alleged sexual affair between the monastery’s prioress and a priest.

The Carmelite Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity in Arlington, Texas, in this case ultimately entered into a formal association with the Society of St. Pius X, which is not in full communion with the Catholic Church. The bishop called this a “scandalous” act that was “permeated with the odor of schism.” The Holy See suppressed the monastery.

Seton Shrine to celebrate 50 years of America’s first native-born saint

unitedyam September 9, 2025

The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland, began a year of celebration on the saint’s canonization in 2025. / Credit: Seton Shrine

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 9, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

This week the National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton will welcome hundreds of people to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the canonization of the first American-born saint and to recognize the 87 American Catholics on the path to sainthood now.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, a mother, convert to the Catholic faith, and founder of the Sisters of Charity, was canonized by Pope Paul VI on Sept. 14, 1975.

The Seton Shrine will commemorate the milestone of her canonization with a weekend-long event on its grounds in Emmitsburg, Maryland, honoring her legacy and her work of planting the seeds for Catholic education in the United States.

The weekend will also highlight other American saints and those who are blessed, venerable, or servants of God “who reveal that people from the U.S. can obtain holiness,” Rob Judge, executive director of the Seton Shrine, told CNA.

“We wanted to make the celebration about that possibility for all of us,” he said. “That God loves us, he’s destined all of us for heaven, and we can all obtain that through his grace.”

The event is expected to be one of the biggest events in the history of the shrine.

The celebration will kick off Friday, Sept. 12, with a concert by classically trained musicians from the Peabody Institute in Baltimore and The Juilliard School who will perform in the evening as the historic grounds are lit up with tea lights and candles. They will play hits from the 1970s to take attendees back the year Seton became a saint.

On Saturday, Sept. 13, the general superior of the Vincentian order, Father Tomaž Mavrič, will celebrate Mass; adoration and confession will also be available as well as the chance to learn more about Seton’s story through tours and exhibits.

Sunday, Sept. 14, marks the 50th anniversary and will include a Mass celebrated by Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore and Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Attendees will also hear “a message and an apostolic blessing from Pope Leo that will be read at the Mass by representatives of the nuncio’s office,” Judge said.

Since Seton’s canonization, 11 Americans have been canonized and 87 more have the potential to join them. The weekend’s special event called “Saints on Their Way Village” will welcome representatives from nearly two dozen guilds dedicated to advancing the cause of an American for canonization. Each guild will host a table to share information and answer questions.

Attendees can also explore the “Who’s Next?” exhibit in the shrine’s museum. The display features photos of potential saints including Dorothy Day, Blessed Solanus Casey, and Venerable Fulton Sheen.

Attendees might even catch a glimpse of themselves in the mirrors that hang alongside the pictures to show “we can all be saints, even if not declared saints,” Judge said.

Diocese investigates sainthood cause of Virginia father who saved son

unitedyam September 8, 2025

Tom Vander Woude with two of his grandchildren, Michael and Bobby Vander Woude (from left to right). The Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, is investigating Tom Vander Woude’s cause for sainthood almost two decades after he died saving his son. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

CNA Staff, Sep 8, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Suffocation awaited a young man with Down syndrome when the eroded surface of a toxic sewage tank crumbled beneath his feet.

Joseph Vander Woude would have died alone in the cramped tank surrounded by toxic fumes, but his father jumped in, pushing him toward the surface with his last breath.

Even as his lungs filled with toxic gases, Tom called out to the farmhand who was trying to pull Joseph out.

“You pull, I’ll push,” he said.

Tom eventually faded into unconsciousness, still propping Joseph up until emergency responders pulled them both out of the 7-foot-deep tank.

By the time they did, Tom was dead.

It was Sept. 8, 2008, when Tom, 66, left behind his wife and seven sons. But Tom’s legacy wouldn’t end there.

Seventeen years later, a group of Catholics is now working with the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, to open his cause for sainthood.

“You’re shocked that he’s gone, and you miss him, and you don’t know what’s going to replace that void, if it ever will be replaced,” his fifth son, Chris Vander Woude, told CNA. “But then you’re like, that’s a hero.”

More than 1,500 people attended Tom’s funeral Mass, including the local bishop, more than 75 priests, and more than 60 altar boys.

Tom’s story continues to resonate. A guild founded in his name is interviewing those who knew him, while the diocese has named a postulator and vice postulator to investigate his cause for sainthood.

Depending on what they find, his case could go to Rome.

Signs of holiness

In the Catholic Church, three things can put you on the path to sainthood: martyrdom, heroic virtue, and now — after a 2017 move by Pope Francis to expand sainthood — a sacrificial death.

Keith Henderson never knew Tom, but as he learned about him, he was inspired to found the Tom Vander Woude Guild that is advocating for his cause by sharing his story. Alongside the guild, the Diocese of Arlington has taken several preliminary steps to open his cause, including naming a postulator and vice postulator, who are investigating and promoting the cause.

As Henderson has learned more about Tom, he found that “his entire life was one of tremendous faith and selfless service to everyone he met.”

“His selfless life and death serve as a model for how laypeople can pursue holiness in the 21st century,” he told CNA.

Tom Vander Woude and his wife, Mary Ellen. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

“He was very joyful. His charity abounds,” Chris added. “He was always helping people.”

But at the same time, Tom was ordinary.

Chris remembers his dad as “quiet” and more of a “St. Joseph character.” Born on April 24, 1942, Tom was a “South Dakota farmer boy” who married his high school sweetheart, Mary Ellen. It was a “country boy meets city girl” type of love story, Chris said.

Tom would go on to become many more things — math whiz, Navy pilot, commercial pilot, farmer, father, and now, potential saint.

In 1965, Tom Vander Woude became a Navy pilot. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

“He was just an ordinary sort of a guy who made an extraordinary impact in so many ways, and on so many people during his life,” Henderson said.

By all accounts, Tom was a busy man: a commercial pilot with a demanding schedule, an attentive father of seven, and a dedicated farmer.

But Tom attended daily Mass often, prayed the rosary every day, and made a weekly Holy Hour from 2 to 3 a.m. — odd hours due to his flying schedule.

“Dad was the unquestioned leader and protector of the family, and he led spiritually, too,” Chris said. “No matter what dad did that day, if it was flying or farming, he was on his knees saying the rosary.”

Tom Vander Woude with baby Joseph “Josie” Vander Woude. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

Getting Josie off the sidelines

For Chris it has been “surreal” to share his father’s story. People are praying for his father’s intercession in all sorts of scenarios — often related to having a child with special needs, Chris said.

Tom’s third-oldest son, Dan Vander Woude, recalled how Tom went out of his way to ensure that Joseph, affectionately known as “Josie” by his family, was included.

When he was young, part of Joseph’s physical therapy entailed crawling on the ground. Tom was right there with him, crawling on the floor.

When a grown-up Dan asked his father to coach a JV basketball team, Tom was all in — as long as Joseph could be there, too.

Tom Vander Woude coached basketball in his spare time. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

“I thought Joseph would simply do the warm-ups with the team and cheer them on from the bench,” Dan recalled.

But to Dan’s surprise, during one basketball game, Tom had convinced the other coach and the referees to let Joseph play.

“Joseph went into the game and wasted no time getting a couple of fouls and chucking up some long shots,” Dan said. “Joseph was beaming because Dad had given him the opportunity to play in a real game.”

“I was deeply moved that my dad was always committed to getting Joseph off the sidelines and into the game — in basketball and all areas of life,” Dan said.

Tom Vander Woude with Josie on a horse. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

‘Just do the right thing’

After the sewage tank accident, Joseph spent several days at the hospital recovering. Healthy now, Joseph takes care of his 81-year-old mother on the family farm.

“Seventeen years later, Joseph actually takes care of Mom,” Chris said. “It’s just amazing to see God’s plan and providence.”

Joseph carries the groceries, gets the door for his mom, and offers her his arm when she needs it.

“You always see Joseph and mom together — very similar to early on, you always saw Joseph and dad together in his last few years,” Chris said.

Tom’s family continues to grow, with 39 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. His eldest son, Father Tom Vander Woude, is a Catholic priest.

A family photo taken at Chris Vander Woude’s graduation from Christendom College. From right to left: Joseph, Tom, Dan Vander Woude (third son), Father Tom Vander Woude (oldest son), Steve Vander Woude (second son), Pat Vander Woude (sixth son), Chris Vander Woude (fifth son). Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

Chris had decided to spread his father’s story after telling it to a parish in Boston one day.

“Many people were crying,” he recalled. “They were on the edge of their seats. A lot of it resonates with them.”

“Knowing that people were grateful for being able to hear the story — that was a big catalyst,” he said. “If they were grateful, there’s probably a lot of other people out there that would love to hear his story.”

Since then, Chris is set on sharing his father’s story. In addition to several podcasts and talks he has given at local Virginia parishes and in Maryland, he plans to speak at parishes in Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, Texas, New York City, and several other states.

“He’s a very humble man, so he’s probably not very happy with all the notoriety,” Chris said.

Tom wasn’t one to turn a phrase, but Chris does remember a simple saying of his dad’s. Tom used to say: “Just do the right thing,” Chris recalled. “Usually, that’s pretty simple. We’re the ones that make it more complicated by thinking of all the different circumstances or possibilities.”

“Dad never aimed to do anything extraordinary. He just aimed to live every day as best he can,” Chris said. “And so I think that’s an example for all of us.”

Where does your state stand on the death penalty?

unitedyam August 30, 2025

null / Credit: felipe caparros/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Aug 30, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

The United States is seeing the highest number of executions in more than a decade, with 30 executions so far in 2025.

CNA has released three new interactive maps to show where each state in the U.S. stands on life issues — the protection of unborn life, assisted suicide, and the death penalty. The maps will be updated as new information on each issue becomes available.

Below is an analysis of the map that shows where each state stands on death penalty laws as of August 2025.

The death penalty in the U.S.

The United States is split on the death penalty, which is also known as capital punishment. Twenty-three states have the death penalty, while 23 states have abolished it. In the remaining four states, executions have been temporarily paused via executive action, but the death penalty has not been abolished.

Of the states that have abolished the death penalty, Michigan took the lead, becoming the first state to abolish the death penalty in 1847. Alaska and Hawaii — both newer states — have never had the death penalty.

Five states (Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Utah) allow the death penalty via firing squad as an alternative to lethal injection.

The federal death penalty can be implemented for certain federal crimes in all 50 states as well as U.S. territories.

A total of 16 federal executions have occurred since the modern federal death penalty was instituted in 1988.

The federal death penalty was found unconstitutional in the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Furman v. Georgia in 1972, but it was later reinstated for certain offenses and then expanded by the Federal Death Penalty Act of 1994.

In 2024, President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 men but left three men on death row.

Where does your state stand on the death penalty?

Alabama: The death penalty is legal in Alabama. The state has one of the highest per capita execution rates in the nation, with 81 people executed since 1976.

Alaska: Alaska has never had the death penalty. Capital punishment was abolished by the territorial legislature two years before Alaska became a state. Hawaii and Alaska are the only states to have never had capital punishment in state law.

Arizona: The death penalty is currently legal in Arizona but has been paused for various reasons throughout the state’s history. In 2025 executions resumed in Arizona following a three-year pause.

Arkansas: Arkansas allows the death penalty if a defendant is found guilty of capital murder, defined as the premeditated and deliberate death of another person. In 2025, Arkansas became the fifth state to use nitrogen gas for executions.

California: California has had a moratorium on its death penalty since 2019.

Colorado: In 2020, Colorado abolished the death penalty.

Connecticut: In 2012, Connecticut abolished the death penalty for future crimes.

Delaware: The Delaware Supreme Court found capital punishment to be unconstitutional in 2016, and in 2024 Delaware repealed the state’s death penalty laws.

District of Columbia: The District of Columbia does not have a death penalty. It was repealed by the D.C. Council in 1981.

Florida: Florida allows the death penalty for first-degree murder and other capital felonies, including sexual battery. Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2023 ended requirements for juries to vote unanimously for capital punishment. DeSantis also signed legislation allowing capital punishment in the case of sexual battery of children.

Georgia: Georgia law allows the death penalty in cases where the defendants are at least 17 years old and commit certain homicides; for instance, if the method of homicide was depraved or if the defendant committed the murder in a public place threatening other people.

Hawaii: Hawaii abolished the death penalty in 1957 when it was still a territory, prior to becoming a state. Hawaii and Alaska are the only states to have never had capital punishment in state law.

Idaho: Idaho is one of five states to allow the death penalty by firing squads. In 2023, the state allowed this method due to a shortage of lethal-injection drugs. The method can be used if the state cannot obtain lethal-injection drugs.

Illinois: Illinois abolished the death penalty in 2011.

Indiana: In Indiana, the death penalty is legal in some murder cases with “aggravating circumstances” for someone 18 or older who is not intellectually disabled. Lethal injection is the only method of execution that is legal.

Iowa: Iowa abolished the death penalty in 1965. Though some capital punishment proponents have attempted to bring it back over the years, none have succeeded.

Kansas: The death penalty is legal in Kansas, but the state has not executed anyone since 1994. Kansas has abolished and reinstated the death penalty several times.

Kentucky: The death penalty is legal in Kentucky for those convicted of murder with aggravating circumstances.

Louisiana: The death penalty is legal in Louisiana.

Maine: Maine abolished the death penalty in 1887.

Maryland: Maryland abolished the death penalty in 2013.

Massachusetts: Massachusetts abolished the death penalty in 1984.

Michigan: Michigan was the first state — and the first government in the English-speaking world — to abolish the death penalty. It abolished capital punishment in its constitution in 1847.

Minnesota: In 1911, Minnesota abolished the death penalty via the state Legislature.

Mississippi: Mississippi is one of five states to allow the death penalty by firing squad.

Missouri: Capital punishment is legal in Missouri, typically for first-degree murder with aggravating factors.

Montana: The death penalty is legal in Montana.

Nebraska: Though Nebraska lawmakers have debated abolishing the death penalty in recent years, it remains legal.

Nevada: The death penalty is legal in Nevada in first-degree murder cases with at least one aggravating circumstance.

New Hampshire: New Hampshire abolished the death penalty in 2019 after the state Legislature overrode the governor’s veto of the repeal bill.

New Jersey: New Jersey abolished the death penalty in 2007.

New Mexico: New Mexico abolished the death penalty in 2009.

New York: In 2004, the New York Court of Appeals declared New York’s death penalty law unconstitutional.

North Carolina: The death penalty is legal in North Carolina for first-degree murder cases with an aggravating factor. The state law has 11 aggravating factors, including for sexual offenses, cruelty, and murder of a witness or law enforcement officer.

North Dakota: In 1973, North Dakota abolished the death penalty.

Ohio: In 2020, Gov. Mike DeWine declared a moratorium on the death penalty in Ohio.

Oklahoma: Oklahoma has the highest per capita state execution rate, with 127 executions from 1976–2024. Oklahoma is one of five states to allow capital punishment by firing squad.

Oregon: Executions have been paused as Oregon has had a moratorium on the death penalty since 2011.

Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania has had a moratorium on executions since 2015.

Rhode Island: Rhode Island abolished the death penalty in 1852. The state briefly reinstated it in 1872, but it never carried out another execution.

South Carolina: South Carolina is one of five states to allow the death penalty by firing squad.

South Dakota: In South Dakota, the death penalty is legal only in cases where someone dies. Those who are declared insane or those with mental disabilities cannot be sentenced to capital punishment.

Tennessee: The death penalty is legal in Tennessee. In 2022, Gov. Bill Lee placed a moratorium on capital punishment for review of lethal injection protocols, but executions recently reopened.

Texas: Texas has the second-highest per capita state execution rate, with 101 executions from 1976–2024.

Utah: Utah is one of five states to allow the death penalty by firing squad, and it has been requested twice in recent years. States with this option usually allow defendants to choose, as some say it is less painful and more instantaneous than lethal injection, which at times has taken hours to cause death.

Vermont: Vermont abolished the death penalty in 1972 after the U.S. Supreme Court — for a brief period of time — declared the punishment unconstitutional in Furman v. Georgia.

Virginia: Virginia abolished the death penalty in 2021.

Washington: In 2018, the Washington state Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was unconstitutional, citing racial bias and arbitrariness. In 2023, capital punishment was formally removed from state law.

West Virginia: West Virginia abolished the death penalty in 1965, though there have been attempts to reinstate it in recent years.

Wisconsin: Wisconsin abolished the death penalty in 1953, one of the first states to do so.

Wyoming: The death penalty by lethal injection is legal in Wyoming. It is not allowed if the person is mentally incapacitated or pregnant.

Federal: The death penalty is legal on a federal level in the United States of America. The Trump administration restored the death penalty on Jan. 20, 2025, via an executive order.

Catholic Church teaching on the death penalty

In 2018, the Vatican developed the Church’s teaching on the death penalty, with Pope Francis updating the Catechism of the Catholic Church to reflect that the death penalty is “inadmissible” in the contemporary landscape.

Previous teaching in the catechism issued during the pontificate of St. John Paul II permitted the death penalty in “very rare” cases, saying that “cases of absolute necessity for suppression of the offender ‘today … are very rare, if not practically nonexistent” (CCC, 2267, pre-2018).

“Cosmic Dawn” Screening at Greenbelt Cinema

unitedyam June 14, 2025

Attendees line up to enter the theater for a screening of the new NASA+ documentary “Cosmic Dawn: The Untold Story of the James Webb Space Telescope,” Wednesday, June 11, 2025, at the Greenbelt Cinema in Greenbelt, Maryland. Featuring never-before-seen footage, Cosmic Dawn offers an unprecedented glimpse into the assembly, testing, and launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.