The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has instructed federal prisons to expand the range of methods used for executions, including firing squads, gas asphyxiation, and electrocution. In a 48-page memo released Friday, the department stated that this will "strengthen" the death penalty, "deterring the most barbaric crimes, providing justice for victims, and ensuring long-awaited closure for surviving loved ones." The previous administration had imposed a moratorium on most federal executions. Before leaving office, former President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates. President Donald Trump instructed the department to resume seeking executions on his first day in office last year. The memo also defends the use of lethal injection, calling the drug pentobarbital the "gold standard of lethal injection drugs." It has been the default method for federal executions since 1993 but has faced criticism from activists as a cruel means of execution, and there have been challenges in recent years in securing the drug. Expanding execution methods "will help ensure the Department is prepared to carry out lawful executions even if a specific drug is unavailable," the DOJ said in an accompanying report. Trump has long been a supporter of the death penalty. During his first term, he ended a 20-year moratorium on federal executions. Thirteen death row inmates were executed during that term. Several states, each with its own laws regarding the death penalty, have already turned to alternative methods. Five states have firing squads, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.