Three remain on federal death row after Biden commutations: Who are they
 |
| Three men still remain on federal death row after President Joe Biden issued sweeping commutations to the sentences of 37 other prisoners who were awaiting execution. |
Dylann Roof
Dylann Roof, now 30, carried out the racist killings of nine Black members of Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015. A jury found him guilty of 33 federal charges, including nine counts of racially motivated hate crimes resulting in death, in December 2016. He was sentenced to death in early 2017, and a federal appeals court upheld his conviction and death sentence in 2021.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 31, was convicted of the Boston Marathon bombing on April 15, 2013, which killed three people and injured 264 others. He and his older brother Tamerlan set off two bombs near the marathon's finish line, killing Martin Richard, an 8-year-old from Boston, Lingzi Lu, a 23-year-old Boston University graduate student from China, and Krystle Campbell, a 29-year-old restaurant manager from Medford, Massachusetts.
| We are absolutely grateful for what President Biden has done, but we urge him to finish the job. Do not give Trump the power to execute anyone." Abraham Bonowitz, the executive director of Death Penalty Action, said |
Robert Bowers
Robert Bowers, 52, killed 11 congregants in a shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh during Sabbath morning services on October 27, 2018. He also injured two worshippers and five police officers. Bowers had expressed hatred towards Jewish people on social media before the attack. He was convicted on 63 criminal counts in June last year, including hate crimes resulting in death and obstruction of free exercise of religion resulting in death.
The same federal jury that convicted Bowers recommended the death penalty in August last year, marking the first time during Biden's administration that federal prosecutors successfully sought and won the death penalty.
Read More: List of Biden’s Death Row Commutations And Who Was Not Commuted?
Profiles of Individuals on the Commuted List
President Joe Biden has commuted the sentences of several notable federal death row inmates, converting their punishments to life imprisonment without parole. Among these individuals are:
Len Davis: A former New Orleans police officer, Davis was convicted in 1994 for orchestrating the murder of Kim Groves, a local resident who had filed a brutality complaint against him. Davis enlisted a hitman to carry out the killing, leading to his death sentence.
Brandon Council: In 2017, Council was convicted of the murders of Donna Major and Kathryn Hawkins during a bank robbery in Conway, South Carolina. He claimed that "demons" were controlling people's minds, reflecting potential mental health issues considered during his commutation.
Billie Jerome Allen: Allen was sentenced to death for his involvement in a 1997 bank robbery in St. Louis, Missouri, during which a security guard, Richard Heflin, was fatally shot. Throughout his incarceration, Allen maintained his innocence and actively campaigned for his release.
| Speculation about federal death sentence commutations grew after the White House announced Biden’s upcoming visit to Italy, where he will meet Pope Francis. The Pope, a vocal opponent of the death penalty, recently called for prayers for U.S. death row inmates, amplifying hopes that Biden, a practicing Catholic, might take decisive action against capital punishment during his presidency’s final months. Name Reg. No. Shannon Wayne Agofsky 06267-045 Billie Jerome Allen 26901-044 Aquilia Marcivicci Barnette 12599-058 Brandon Leon Basham 98940-071 Anthony George Battle 11451-056 Meier Jason Brown 11364-021 Carlos David Caro 37786-079 Wesley Paul Coonce, Jr. 30011-039 Brandon Michael Council 63961-056 Christopher Emory Cramer 10422-081 Len Davis 24325-034 Joseph Ebron 08655-007 Ricky Allen Fackrell 12324-081 Edward Leon Fields, Jr. 04136-063 Chadrick Evan Fulks 16617-074 Marvin Charles Gabrion, II 09184-055 Edgar Baltazar Garcia 28132-177 Thomas Morocco Hager 08596-007 Charles Michael Hall 03766-036 Norris G. Holder 26902-044 Richard Allen Jackson 16669-058 Jurijus Kadamovas 21050-112 Daryl Lawrence 66476-061 Iouri Mikhel 23675-112 Ronald Mikos 20716-424 James H. Roane, Jr. 32923-083 Julius Omar Robinson 26190-177 David Anthony Runyon 57997-083 Ricardo Sanchez, Jr. 75820-004 Thomas Steven Sanders 15967-043 Kaboni Savage 58232-066 Mark Isaac Snarr 11093-081 Rejon Taylor 41070-074 Richard Tipton 32922-083 Jorge Avila Torrez 16054-084 Daniel Troya 75817-004 Alejandro Enrique Ramirez Umaña 23077-058 |
