President Biden has commuted the sentences of the majority of federal death row inmates.
President Joe Biden announced his decision to commute the sentences of nearly all inmates on federal death row, a strategic action aimed at preventing President-elect Donald Trump from resuming halted executions.
“In good conscience, I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted,” Biden stated in a press release on Monday. This decision affects 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates, aligning with the moratorium on executions that his administration had previously established.
The 37 individuals will now serve life sentences without the possibility of parole. Notably, this moratorium does not apply to those convicted of terrorism or hate-driven mass murder. The list of commutations provided by the White House notably excludes Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, convicted for his role in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing that resulted in three fatalities and over 260 injuries, as well as Robert Bowers, who was found guilty in the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, which claimed 11 lives. Additionally, Biden chose not to commute the sentence of Dylann Roof, who was convicted for the 2015 mass shooting at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where nine individuals lost their lives.
Dzhokhar “Jahar” Anzorovich Tsarnaev (born July 22, 1993) is an American terrorist of Chechen and Avar descent who perpetrated the Boston Marathon bombing.
Among those whose death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment are Thomas Steven Sanders, sentenced for the kidnapping and murder of a 12-year-old girl in Louisiana; Len Davis, a former police officer sentenced for orchestrating the murder of a woman who had lodged a complaint against him; and Richard Allen Jackson, convicted of the kidnapping, rape, and murder of a 22-year-old jogger in Asheville, North Carolina. Biden had committed to abolishing the death penalty during his presidential campaign and faced mounting pressure from progressive lawmakers and criminal justice reform advocates to act on the sentences of federal death row inmates prior to Trump assuming office.
Biden stated, “Let there be no doubt: I denounce these murderers, mourn for the victims of their abhorrent actions, and feel deep sorrow for the families enduring unimaginable and irreparable loss.” However, he emphasized, “I am increasingly convinced that we must abolish the death penalty at the federal level.”
In contrast, Trump has expressed his intention to broaden the application of the death penalty during a potential second term. During his first term, his administration executed 13 federal inmates, marking the end of a 17-year pause in federal executions. Since 1988, 16 individuals have been executed for federal crimes, with all but three of those executions occurring during Trump’s presidency. No federal executions took place during Biden’s time in office or his vice presidency. Biden’s decisions regarding commutations have elicited mixed responses.
Pope Francis, a fellow Catholic, had publicly urged Biden to halt the executions, and the two spoke by phone last week. Following the White House’s announcement, advocates and lawmakers who had implored Biden not to execute death row inmates commended the commutations.
Patrick Gaspard, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, a liberal organization, remarked that Biden had “solidified his legacy as a proponent of mercy, compassion, and justice for all.” Representative Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., one of over sixty Democratic lawmakers who encouraged Biden to exercise his clemency powers before leaving office, stated that Biden’s decision would “save lives, tackle the significant racial disparities in our criminal justice system, and convey a powerful message about redemption, decency, and humanity.”
She added, “The death penalty is a racially biased, flawed, and fundamentally unjust punishment that has no place in any society.” According to the Legal Defense Fund, as of January 2024, approximately 40% of death row inmates in the United States were Black, 42% were white, and 14% were Hispanic, with an additional 3% identified as Asian or Native American. Republicans in Congress criticized Biden for this decision.
Representative Keith Self, R-Texas, expressed in a post on X that the commutations represented a “horrific betrayal of justice.” Senator John Kennedy, R-La., described the decision as “horrifying.” He elaborated on the crimes committed by several of the inmates in a series of posts, asserting, “Their victims deserve better, and justice demands more.” Representative Dan Meuser, R-Pa., characterized the commutations as “senseless” and an “outrageous example of this administration’s upside down and backwards ideology.”
As he approaches the end of his term, President Biden has actively utilized his clemency powers. Earlier this month, he commuted the sentences of nearly 1,500 individuals who had been on home confinement since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, an action the White House referred to as “the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history.” Additionally, Biden pardoned 39 individuals convicted of nonviolent offenses and granted a broad pardon to his son, Hunter Biden, in early December for charges related to gun and tax violations. Former President Trump also exercised his clemency authority towards the conclusion of his presidency, issuing 74 pardons and 70 commutations on his final full day in office.
President Biden’s decision to commute the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates reflects his commitment to ending the death penalty. While some critics oppose the move, it aligns with his broader criminal justice reform agenda, emphasizing mercy and the need to address racial disparities within the justice system.