One of them is criminal defense attorney Stephen Howard, whom KUTV News recently interviewed. Howard has handled some of the most serious felony cases in Utah’s courts, including those eligible for the death penalty. He knows what it looks like when theory meets reality in the courtroom — and why capital punishment, in Utah, is quietly fading into the background.
The Theory vs. the Process
On paper, the death penalty is the most serious punishment the state can impose. But in practice, it’s become one of the most difficult to carry out.
Capital cases now take decades to resolve. Appeals stack up. Legal standards change.
The case of Ralph Menzies illustrates the point. Menzies was sentenced to death in 1988 for a brutal murder. His execution was scheduled for 2024 — more than 35 years later. But just weeks before it was to be carried out, the Utah Supreme Court delayed it to allow a new mental competency evaluation. Menzies had been diagnosed with vascular dementia. The court had to determine whether he understood what was happening.
This kind of delay isn’t rare. It’s built into the process. And it affects everyone involved — from the defendant to the victim’s family to the state itself.
Costs Keep Climbing
The legal complexity of capital cases also makes them extremely expensive. In 2023, Utah spent nearly $290,000 on execution-related preparations — including lethal injection drugs, medical staff, team training, and security measures — without carrying out a single execution.
That number doesn’t include the cost of ongoing litigation, expert evaluations, or housing death row inmates in high-security facilities for decades. When added together, the financial burden of the death penalty far exceeds the cost of sentencing someone to life without parole.
Prosecutors Are Rethinking Strategy
Given those realities, more prosecutors in Utah are choosing not to seek the death penalty — even in cases that might warrant it. They’re weighing the cost, the likelihood of success, and the strain it places on courts and families.
Today, there are only two active death penalty cases in the entire state, both involving the killing of law enforcement officers. Outside of those, life without parole has become the go-to sentence in even the most serious cases.
A System That’s Already Evolving
Experience points to something important: the death penalty in Utah hasn’t disappeared, but its role has changed. The state still has the law, but it no longer uses it the way it once did.
In most cases, it’s not delivering fast or final justice. Instead, it’s creating long legal battles, high costs, and outcomes that often look very different from the sentence originally handed down.
The shift isn’t the result of a single reform. It’s happening because the system itself is adapting. Over time, the people inside it — judges, attorneys, prosecutors, and policymakers — are adjusting their approach.
A Closing Reflection
Utah’s gradual move away from the death penalty doesn’t stem from a single decision or dramatic reform. Instead, it reflects that the system, as it exists, no longer functions as intended.
When a punishment takes decades to carry out, when costs climb without resolution, and when outcomes remain uncertain despite years of litigation, it’s fair to ask whether the system is achieving what it set out to do.
This isn’t just a legal question — it’s a practical one. And for Utah, the answer may already be taking shape.