United States President Joe Biden on Monday commuted the death sentences of 37 federal inmates to life imprisonment without parole, marking a significant move ahead of the anticipated return of President-elect Donald Trump, who oversaw a resurgence of federal executions during his first term.
This decision, announced less than a month before Biden leaves office, reflects his administration’s firm stance against capital punishment.
“These commutations are consistent with the moratorium my administration has imposed on federal executions, in cases other than terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder,” Biden stated.
The commutations leave three high-profile inmates on federal death row, including Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, convicted for the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing; Dylann Roof, responsible for the 2015 racially motivated Charleston church massacre; and Robert Bowers, who killed 11 Jewish worshippers in the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting.
Biden emphasized his condemnation of the crimes committed, acknowledging the pain and loss endured by victims’ families. However, he reiterated his conviction that the death penalty should be abolished at the federal level.
The president’s move starkly contrasts with Trump’s approach to capital punishment.
During his tenure, Trump ended a 17-year hiatus on federal executions, overseeing 13 executions in his final six months, the most by any U.S. President in over a century. Trump has also pledged to expand the scope of capital punishment in his upcoming term, including for crimes like drug and human trafficking.
The United States remains divided on the death penalty. While 23 states have abolished it, six others maintain moratoriums, and federal executions have been paused under Biden.
In 2024, there have been 25 executions nationwide, all carried out at the state level.
Biden’s decision to commute these sentences underscores his administration’s commitment to criminal justice reform and aligns with growing calls to end capital punishment in the U.S.
