“Ending the death penalty would be one important step away from a culture of death and toward building a culture of life.”
A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2005

From the pages of the Catholic Conference of Ohio
Society has a duty to defend life against violence and to reach out to victims of crime. Yet our nation’s increasing reliance on the death penalty cannot be justified. Because we have other ways to protect society that are more respectful of human life, the Catholic church supports efforts to end the use of the death penalty and, in the meantime, to restrain its use through broader use of DNA evidence, access to effective counsel, and efforts to address unfairness and injustice related to application of the death penalty. Visit Catholic Conference of Ohio for more.
Ohio Supreme Court Joint Task Force releases report on the administration of Ohio’s death penalty. Read More
Join the People of Faith Initiative with Ohioans to Stop Executions
With the release of the Ohio Supreme Court Task Force Recommendations on the Death Penalty, people of faith – faith leaders (including the Catholic Bishops) from around Ohio are coming together to join OTSE in efforts to end the death penalty. Learn More
RESOURCES
- Discussion Guide on the Culture of Life
- Catholic Teachings from the Vatican on the Death Penalty
- Catechism of the Catholic Church: Fifth Commandment
- USCCB Prayer to End the Use of the Death Penalty
- Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty
- Ohioans to Stop Executions