Joe Biden had implemented a pause on the federal death penalty, but faced increasing pressure to take additional action before his departure from the White House on January 20.
Washington, United States: On Tuesday, Donald Trump criticized Joe Biden for commuting the sentences of nearly all American federal prisoners on death row, as the president-elect prepares to succeed the Democrat in the White House.
In his last month in office, President Biden announced on Monday that he was altering the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal inmates scheduled for execution, changing them to life imprisonment without parole.
Among those whose sentences were commuted were nine individuals convicted of murdering fellow inmates, four involved in murders during bank robberies, and one who killed a prison guard.
“Joe Biden just commuted the Death Sentence on 37 of the worst killers in our Country,” Trump expressed on Truth Social, his social media platform. “When you hear the acts of each, you won’t believe that he did this. Makes no sense. Relatives and friends are further devastated. They can’t believe this is happening!”
Biden had previously put a moratorium on the federal death penalty but was under pressure to take further action before leaving the White House on January 20, especially with indications from Republican Trump that he would reinstate the practice.
Biden condemned the inmates he spared and their “despicable acts,” but stated that his decision was guided by “my conscience and my experience” to prevent the upcoming Trump administration from restarting executions.
However, he excluded three men from his order: one of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombers, a shooter who killed 11 Jewish worshippers in 2018, and a white supremacist responsible for murdering nine Black churchgoers in 2015.
Trump confirmed that he would instruct the Justice Department to “vigorously pursue the death penalty to protect American families and children from violent rapists, murderers, and monsters.”
“We will be a Nation of Law and Order again!” he declared.
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