FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 22, 2026
Contact: Liv Perkins-Davenport, Director of Communications and Development, (919) 404-7409
RALEIGH, N.C. – As North Carolina officials take new steps toward restarting executions after nearly two decades, the North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (NCCADP) will host a public webinar examining what the state has learned during 20 years without executions and what may be at stake as capital cases move through the courts. The webinar, “20 Years With No Executions: What Have We Learned?,” will take place Tuesday, June 23, from noon to 1:15 PM via Zoom.
The event comes at a pivotal moment for North Carolina’s death penalty system. Last year, lawmakers passed House Bill 307, which imposes a two-year timeline for hearings and review of capital cases on appeal. On June 22 and 23, three capital post-conviction hearings are scheduled in Wake County Superior Court, marking a significant development in North Carolina’s death penalty system and offering an early glimpse of how HB 307 may accelerate the path toward resumed executions.
“For nearly 20 years, North Carolina has not carried out an execution. During that time, our state changed,” said Noel Nickle, executive director of NCCADP. “Wrongful convictions came to light. Courts found evidence of racial bias in death row cases. Communities continued developing new approaches to safety and accountability. As some state leaders work to restart executions, this conversation asks what these two decades reveal about justice in North Carolina and whether the death penalty should be part of the future we are building.”
North Carolina’s last execution took place on August 18, 2006. A generation has now passed without an execution in the state. Today, 123 people remain under death sentences in North Carolina.
The webinar will feature Henderson Hill, Rep. Vernetta Alston, Alfred Rivera and Dr. Seth Kotch, four individuals who bring decades of experience studying, litigating, surviving and challenging the death penalty system. The discussion will be moderated by Noel Nickle.
The event is free and open to the public; it is the first event in NCCADP’s three-part series marking twenty years since the last execution. Members of the press are encouraged to attend. Registration is available at nccadp.org/event/20th-anniversary-webinar/.
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The North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (nccadp.org) is a statewide collective of 27 partner organizations working to end the death penalty and advance a vision of justice that addresses harm without perpetuating it. Contact Liv Perkins-Davenport at liv@nccadp.org or (919) 404-7409 for more information.
