diff --git a/Lib/json/tests/test_dump.py b/Lib/json/tests/test_dump.py
index 9a7c8ccdd0b..cd92569d98a 100644
--- a/Lib/json/tests/test_dump.py
+++ b/Lib/json/tests/test_dump.py
@@ -19,5 +19,14 @@ class TestDump(object):
                 {2: 3.0, 4.0: 5L, False: 1, 6L: True}, sort_keys=True),
                 '{"false": 1, "2": 3.0, "4.0": 5, "6": true}')
 
+    # Issue 16228: Crash on encoding resized list
+    def test_encode_mutated(self):
+        a = [object()] * 10
+        def crasher(obj):
+            del a[-1]
+        self.assertEqual(self.dumps(a, default=crasher),
+                 '[null, null, null, null, null]')
+
+
 class TestPyDump(TestDump, PyTest): pass
 class TestCDump(TestDump, CTest): pass
diff --git a/Misc/NEWS b/Misc/NEWS
index 43f1a8f2610..3c9ffc0bce0 100644
--- a/Misc/NEWS
+++ b/Misc/NEWS
@@ -130,6 +130,9 @@ Core and Builtins
 Library
 -------
 
+- Issue #16228: Fix a crash in the json module where a list changes size
+  while it is being encoded.  Patch by Serhiy Storchaka.
+
 - Issue #14897: Enhance error messages of struct.pack and
   struct.pack_into. Patch by Matti Mäki.
 
diff --git a/Modules/_json.c b/Modules/_json.c
index e8a288bd7dd..13f58163fe9 100644
--- a/Modules/_json.c
+++ b/Modules/_json.c
@@ -2224,8 +2224,6 @@ encoder_listencode_list(PyEncoderObject *s, PyObject *rval, PyObject *seq, Py_ss
     static PyObject *empty_array = NULL;
     PyObject *ident = NULL;
     PyObject *s_fast = NULL;
-    Py_ssize_t num_items;
-    PyObject **seq_items;
     Py_ssize_t i;
 
     if (open_array == NULL || close_array == NULL || empty_array == NULL) {
@@ -2239,8 +2237,7 @@ encoder_listencode_list(PyEncoderObject *s, PyObject *rval, PyObject *seq, Py_ss
     s_fast = PySequence_Fast(seq, "_iterencode_list needs a sequence");
     if (s_fast == NULL)
         return -1;
-    num_items = PySequence_Fast_GET_SIZE(s_fast);
-    if (num_items == 0) {
+    if (PySequence_Fast_GET_SIZE(s_fast) == 0) {
         Py_DECREF(s_fast);
         return PyList_Append(rval, empty_array);
     }
@@ -2261,7 +2258,6 @@ encoder_listencode_list(PyEncoderObject *s, PyObject *rval, PyObject *seq, Py_ss
         }
     }
 
-    seq_items = PySequence_Fast_ITEMS(s_fast);
     if (PyList_Append(rval, open_array))
         goto bail;
     if (s->indent != Py_None) {
@@ -2273,8 +2269,8 @@ encoder_listencode_list(PyEncoderObject *s, PyObject *rval, PyObject *seq, Py_ss
             buf += newline_indent
         */
     }
-    for (i = 0; i < num_items; i++) {
-        PyObject *obj = seq_items[i];
+    for (i = 0; i < PySequence_Fast_GET_SIZE(s_fast); i++) {
+        PyObject *obj = PySequence_Fast_GET_ITEM(s_fast, i);
         if (i) {
             if (PyList_Append(rval, s->item_separator))
                 goto bail;