Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
Tell us: Do you agree with Biden commuting 37 death row sentences?
There are three remaining federal inmates who are still facing execution, including Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. What do you make of Biden's decision?
On Monday, President Joe Biden announced he is commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump is set to take office.
The move converts their punishments to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. There are three remaining federal inmates who are still facing execution: Dylann Roof, who in 2015 killed nine Black members of Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina; 2013 Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev; and Robert Bowers, who fatally shot 11 congregants at Pittsburgh’s Tree of life Synagogue in 2018.
“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 … 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.”
Advertisement:
Indeed, Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, has called for expanding the federal death penalty, and has a history of using the measure. During his first term, Trump carried out 13 federal executions – more than under any president in modern history. The president-elect has previously called for the death penalty in the Tsarnaev case.
We want to know: What do you make of Biden’s decision?
Tell us by filling out the form or e-mailing us at [email protected], and your response may appear in a future Boston.com article.
Sorry. This form is no longer available.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com