BOSTON (WWLP) – 37 out of the 40 federal inmates on death row will now spend life in prison without the possibility of parole, due to sentence commutations carried out by President Biden on Monday.
This means three inmates will still face the death penalty–Robert Bowers, who killed 11 people at the Church of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Dylann Roof, who killed 9 black members of the Mother Emanuel AMA Church in Charleston, and convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
Prior to these commutations, the Biden Administration issued a moratorium on the death penalty, putting all upcoming federal executions on hold.
The President explained why he commuted some sentences and not others.
“These commutations are consistent with the moratorium my administration has imposed on federal executions, in cases other than terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder,” said President Biden in a statement.
In Massachusetts, the death penalty has been banned since 1984, when it was deemed unconstitutional.
Marathon bomber Tsarnaev was sentenced to death by a federal court, so he is still subject to the death penalty, despite committing crimes in Massachusetts.
The president made this move before President-elect Trump takes office next month, and the Biden administration says the commutations will prevent Trump from expanding executions as he has previously promised.
The White House said in a statement that President Biden will continue to consider additional pardons and commutations until President-elect Trump takes office.
Source: 22News
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