diff --git a/stasis-core/bin/stasis-core.js b/stasis-core/bin/stasis-core.js
index 94e8b3a..bbe2d25 100755
--- a/stasis-core/bin/stasis-core.js
+++ b/stasis-core/bin/stasis-core.js
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import { once } from 'node:events'
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
 import { basename, resolve } from 'node:path'
 import { existsSync, realpathSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { constants as osConstants } from 'node:os'
 import assert from 'node:assert/strict'
 import pkg from '../package.json' with { type: 'json' }
 
@@ -103,8 +104,9 @@ if (command === '-v' || command === '--version') {
   setEnv('EXODUS_STASIS_RESOURCES', resources)
   const nodeArgs = ['--import', import.meta.resolve('../src/loader.js')]
   const child = spawn(process.execPath, [...nodeArgs, ...argv], { stdio: 'inherit' })
-  const [code] = await once(child, 'close')
-  process.exitCode = code
+  const [code, signal] = await once(child, 'close')
+  // code is null when the child died from a signal; report 128+signo (shell convention) instead of the implicit 0
+  process.exitCode = code ?? 128 + (osConstants.signals[signal] ?? 0)
 } else if (command === 'prune') {
   if (argv.length > 1) usage('Error: prune takes at most one path argument')
   const root = argv[0] ? resolve(argv[0]) : process.cwd()
diff --git a/stasis/bin/stasis.js b/stasis/bin/stasis.js
index 948a664..61afaed 100755
--- a/stasis/bin/stasis.js
+++ b/stasis/bin/stasis.js
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import { once } from 'node:events'
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
 import { basename, dirname, resolve } from 'node:path'
 import { existsSync, realpathSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { constants as osConstants } from 'node:os'
 import assert from 'node:assert/strict'
 import pkg from '../package.json' with { type: 'json' }
 
@@ -167,8 +168,9 @@ if (command === '-v' || command === '--version') {
   const loaderEntry = values.mock ? '../src/loader-mock.js' : '@exodus/stasis-core/loader'
   nodeArgs.push('--import', import.meta.resolve(loaderEntry))
   const child = spawn(process.execPath, [...nodeArgs, ...argv], { stdio: 'inherit' })
-  const [code] = await once(child, 'close')
-  process.exitCode = code
+  const [code, signal] = await once(child, 'close')
+  // code is null when the child died from a signal; report 128+signo (shell convention) instead of the implicit 0
+  process.exitCode = code ?? 128 + (osConstants.signals[signal] ?? 0)
 } else if (command === 'bundle') {
   const flags = []
   const valueFlags = new Set(['--mapping', '--output', '--scope', '--lockfile', '--conditions', '--mainFields', '--platforms', '-o'])
diff --git a/tests/stasis-core-cli.test.js b/tests/stasis-core-cli.test.js
index 4559e9c..367a1fc 100644
--- a/tests/stasis-core-cli.test.js
+++ b/tests/stasis-core-cli.test.js
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { test } from 'node:test'
 import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process'
-import { cpSync, mkdtempSync, readFileSync, rmSync } from 'node:fs'
+import { cpSync, mkdtempSync, readFileSync, rmSync, writeFileSync } from 'node:fs'
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os'
 import { dirname, join } from 'node:path'
 import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
@@ -117,6 +117,15 @@ test('run: a forked child is enforced from the bundle but does not write (via th
   t.assert.deepEqual(readFileSync(join(tmp, 'stasis.lock.json')), lockBaseline, 'child must not rewrite the lockfile')
 }))
 
+test('run reports 128+signo when the child dies from a signal', withTmp((t, tmp) => {
+  // A signal-killed child (SIGSEGV, SIGKILL, OOM-kill) closes with code=null; the launcher
+  // must not turn that into an implicit exit 0. 137 = 128 + SIGKILL(9), the shell convention.
+  writeFileSync(join(tmp, 'package.json'), JSON.stringify({ name: 'sigkill-fixture', version: '0.0.0', private: true, type: 'module' }))
+  writeFileSync(join(tmp, 'entry.js'), "process.kill(process.pid, 'SIGKILL')\n")
+  const r = run(['run', '--lock=ignore', 'entry.js'], { cwd: tmp })
+  t.assert.equal(r.status, 137, `stderr: ${r.stderr}`)
+}))
+
 test('prune validates and removes against the lockfile', withTmp((t, tmp) => {
   cpSync(pruneFixture, tmp, { recursive: true })
   const r = run(['prune', tmp])