Biden commutes most federal death sentences
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
President Biden speaks during a Hanukkah holiday reception in the East Room of the White House on Dec. 16, in Washington, DC. Photo: JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images
With 28 full days left in office, President Biden announced Monday he is commuting the sentences for 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, converting their punishments to life without possibility of parole.
The big picture: Biden promised to abolish federal use of the death penalty when he campaigned for the White House in 2020.
- Monday's move spares the lives of people convicted in killings, including the slayings of police and military officers, people on federal land and those involved in deadly bank robberies or drug deals, as well as the killings of guards or prisoners in federal facilities, AP reports.
What he's saying: "Make no mistake: I condemn these murderers, grieve for the victims of their despicable acts, and ache for all the families who have suffered unimaginable and irreparable loss," Biden said in a statement. "But guided by my conscience and my experience, ... I am more convinced than ever that we must stop the use of the death penalty at the federal level."
- In a jab at President-elect Trump, Biden added: "In good conscience, I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted."
Between the lines: Three federal inmates still face execution.
- Dylann Roof, the white supremacist who carried out the 2015 racist slayings of nine Black members of Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C.
- Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who helped carry out the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, which left three dead and scores injured.
- Robert Bowers, who fatally shot 11 congregants at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue in 2018, the deadliest antisemitic attack in U.S. history.
Zoom in: Earlier this year, Biden's Justice Department asked a federal judge to impose the death penalty for the first time in a new case.
- The request was for Payton Gendron, the white gunman who killed 10 Black people in a mass shooting at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.
- New York doesn't have the death penalty, but the federal government has jurisdiction to seek the punishment with federal interest and alleged violations of federal statutes, the Death Penalty Information Center said in January.
Context: Biden in 2021 announced a moratorium on federal capital punishment to study the protocols used.
- There were 13 federal executions during Trump's first term, more than under any president in modern history.
- Biden this month faced sharp criticism, including from Democrats, after pardoning his son, Hunter Biden. He faced sentencing after being convicted of felony gun charges and pleading guilty to felony tax charges.
- Monday's announcement comes after recent pressure from advocacy groups urging Biden to act to make it more difficult for Trump to increase the use of capital punishment for federal inmates.
Go deeper:
Editor's note: This story was updated with additional context. Axios' April Rubin contributed reporting.
