President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of 37 men who were found guilty of committing brutal murders, including children and families.
The White House announced Monday that Biden would be commuting all but three men on death row, reclassifying their sentences “from execution to life without the possibility of parole.” Some of those listed were sentenced to death after being charged with gory mass murders and raping women before killing them. (RELATED: Biden Commutes Sentences Of Cartel Leaders, Crack Dealers And ‘Notorious’ Fraudsters In Massive Clemency Push)
“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,” a statement from the president reads.
“But guided by my conscience and my experience as a public defender, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Vice President, and now President, I am more convinced than ever that we must stop the use of the death penalty at the federal level. In good conscience, I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted,” the statement continues.
Among those who received a commutation is Richard Allen Jackson, who confessed to kidnapping, raping and killing Karen Styles, a recent college graduate, in North Carolina, according to court documents. Jackson told officers that, in 1994, he arrived at Pisgah National Forest near Asheville, North Carolina, and watched Styles walk and stretch down a trail. Once Styles and Jackson passed each other on the trail, Jackson pointed a gun at the woman, who pleaded with him not to hurt her, the court documents show. Jackson then duct taped Styles mouth and eyes before leading her into the park, he told officers. He then, according to court documents, raped Styles and once she began screaming for help, shot her in the head.
I am commuting the sentences of 37 individuals on federal death row to life sentences without the possibility of parole.
This action is consistent with my Administration’s moratorium on federal executions, except for cases involving terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder. pic.twitter.com/Obxfytxxbb
— President Biden (@POTUS) December 23, 2024
Others included in the president’s Monday announcement include Ricardo Sanchez Jr. and Daniel Troya. A Florida judge sentenced the two men to death in 2009 after finding them guilty of murdering a family of four on the highway, according to NBC News. Jose Escobedo, the father of Luis Julian, 4, and Luis Damian, 3, and the husband of Yessica Guerrero Escobedo, was involved in a drug ring with Troya and Sanchez, NBC News reported.
Yessica Guerrero Escobedo was shot 11 times, while cradling her two boys and trying to protect them, according to NBC News. The two toddlers were shot a total of ten times and Jose Escobedo was shot five times alongside his family and was found dead on the side of the highway, the outlet reported.
“I must confess I have no confidence that Mr. Troya would not do this again if the opportunity presented itself,” the judge who sentenced the men said at the time, adding that Troya is “enormously dangerous” with “no regard for the taking of a human life.”
Thomas Morocco Hager was sentenced to death in 2007 after he was found guilty of stabbing 19-year-old Barbra White, according to the Washington Times. White was found, bound, gagged and stabbed 82 times in the bathtub of her apartment by her one-year-old daughter, the outlet reported. The one-year-old was not physically harmed during the murder but upon finding her mom, left bloodstained footprints around their apartment, according to the Washington Times.
Biden’s actions over the last 2 weeks on pardons/commutations are indefensible. It’s clear he cares more about violent criminals than victims.
12 y/o Lexis Roberts witnessed her mom’s execution at the hands of Thomas Sanders before he slit her throat
Biden commuted his sentence pic.twitter.com/zvfFXwoZoX
— Eric Schmitt (@Eric_Schmitt) December 23, 2024
Biden also commuted the sentence of Thomas Sanders, who was sentenced to death after he kidnapped and killed a 12-year-old and murdered her mother, according to a Department of Justice press release. In 2010, Sanders began dating Sullen Roberts and the pair took Roberts’ 12-year-old daughter on a road trip that eventually led to their murders, the press release reads. While on the road, Sanders took the mother and daughter to an Arizona desert where he shot Sullen Roberts in the head and forced Lexis Roberts back into the car, according to the press release.
Sanders then shot Lexis Roberts four times, cut her throat and left her body in the woods, the press release reads.
Kaboni Savage, who was also among those whose sentences were commuted, was convicted for his involvement in killing 12 people in connection to a drug enterprise. Savage had previously been in jail on drug charges and ordered from jail the killing of witnesses and families who had been involved in his earlier case, NBC10 News reported. (RELATED: Illegal Cellphones Are Being Used To Assassinate Police Officers And Their Families)
“Their moms will pay. Their kids will pay … I’m dedicated to their death, man,” Savage reportedly said before the victims were firebombed, according to NBC10 News.
I did not expect Christmas Eve eve’s program to go this way. The decision by Joe Biden’s handlers to issue 37 death penalty commutations shocked me and I think most Americans. The only thing Joe Biden should be signing is a resignation letter. https://t.co/wzdQbbTUe9
— Hugh Hewitt (@hughhewitt) December 23, 2024
James H. Roane, Jr., Corey Johnson and Richard Tipson were all sentenced to the death penalty for participating in the drug-related killing of several people. Roane played a part in the murder of 11 of those people. In one instance, as one victim fled after being shot twice in the back, Roane used a “military-style knife” to fatally stab him 18 times, according to court documents.
Brandon Michael Council was sentenced to death, before being commuted by Biden, for killing two women during a bank robbery, according to the Reflector, a local North Carolina outlet. Upon entering the bank, he pulled a gun on two bank employees as they attempted to hide, the outlet reported. Council later told officials he knew he was going to shoot someone when robbing the bank, the Reflector reported.
Today, President Biden announced that he is commuting the sentences of 37 individuals on federal death row.
These individuals will have their sentences reclassified from execution to life without the possibility of parole.
President Biden believes that America must stop the use…
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) December 23, 2024
After Biden’s commutations, three men remain on death row including the 2013 Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Charleston Church shooter Dylann Roof and 2018 Pittsburgh Synagogue shooter Robert Bowers.
“President Biden has dedicated his career to reducing violent crime and ensuring a fair and effective justice system. He believes that America must stop the use of the death penalty at the federal level, except in cases of terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder – which is why today’s actions apply to all but those cases,” a White House factsheet reads.
“When President Biden came into office, his Administration imposed a moratorium on federal executions, and his actions today will prevent the next Administration from carrying out the execution sentences that would not be handed down under current policy and practice,” it continues.
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