Section 262 — Death Sentence: Stay and Timing
Statutory text (Thai original)
ภายใต้บังคับแห่งมาตรา ๒๔๗ และ ๒๔๘ เมื่อคดีถึงที่สุด ผู้ใดต้องคำพิพากษาให้ประหารชีวิต ให้เจ้าหน้าที่นำตัวผู้นั้นไปประหารชีวิตเมื่อพ้นกำหนดหกสิบวันนับแต่วันฟังคำพิพากษา เว้นแต่ในกรณีที่มีการถวายเรื่องราวหรือคำแนะนำขอให้พระราชทานอภัยโทษตามมาตรา ๒๖๑ ก็ให้ทุเลาการประหารชีวิตไว้จนกว่าจะพ้นกำหนดหกสิบวันนับแต่วันที่รัฐมนตรีว่าการกระทรวงยุติธรรมถวายเรื่องราวหรือคำแนะนำขึ้นไปนั้น แต่ถ้าทรงยกเรื่องราวนั้นเสีย ก็ให้จัดการประหารชีวิตก่อนกำหนดนี้ได้ เรื่องราวหรือคำแนะนำขอพระราชทานอภัยโทษแก่ผู้ต้องคำพิพากษาให้ประหารชีวิต ให้ถวายได้แต่ครั้งเดียวเท่านั้น
English translation
Subject to sections 247 and 248, when a case has become final and a person has been sentenced to death, the officials shall carry out the execution of that person after the expiry of sixty days from the date of the pronouncement of the judgment, except that where a petition or a recommendation requesting a royal pardon under section 261 has been submitted, the execution shall be stayed until the expiry of sixty days from the date on which the Minister of Justice submits the petition or the recommendation. However, if the King rejects the petition, the execution may be carried out before that time. A petition or recommendation requesting a royal pardon for a person sentenced to death may be submitted only once.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
This section fixes the mandatory waiting period and the effect of a pardon petition on capital punishment. It builds in a minimum sixty-day pause after a final judgment before execution, giving time for the clemency mechanism in section 261 to be used. Once a petition or recommendation is submitted, a further sixty-day stay runs from the date the Minister of Justice forwards it, but the right is used up after a single petition, and a royal rejection lifts the stay immediately. The opening clause preserves sections 247 and 248, which protect pregnant women and persons of unsound mind from execution. It should be read alongside section 261 (who submits the petition) and section 263 (no equivalent stay for non-capital penalties).
Why this matters in practice
For anyone facing a final death sentence, timing is decisive: the sixty-day windows are the practical space in which a clemency petition must be prepared and lodged, and because only one petition is permitted, it must be complete and persuasive the first time. Families should also note that a royal rejection can shorten the timeline. The related exemptions for pregnancy and mental illness in sections 247 and 248 continue to apply. Cases that reach this stage are those that have exhausted all appeals, so reviewing how the case became final through the Supreme Court decisions record is often the starting point for a clemency strategy.
Frequently asked questions
How long after judgment can a death sentence be carried out in Thailand?
Under section 262, execution may not take place until at least sixty days after the judgment is pronounced, and a pardon petition can extend that stay by a further sixty days.
How many pardon petitions can a death-row prisoner file?
Only one. Section 262 states that a petition or recommendation for a royal pardon for a person sentenced to death may be submitted only once.
Does a pardon petition always delay an execution?
It stays execution for sixty days from when the Minister of Justice forwards it, but if the King rejects the petition, the execution may be carried out before that period ends.