Child murderers and rapists could be spared death penalty under plans drawn up for one of Biden’s final acts

President Joe Biden is considering commuting the sentences of many — or possibly all — of the 40 men sentenced to death as one of his final acts in the White Office, according to a report.

The list of convicts who could avoid execution under the plans includes some of the country’s most notorious killers, including men found guilty of slaughtering children and raping and murdering women.

Biden, 82, recently commuted the prison sentence of Shanlin Jin, a Chinese national who pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography — a move that drew strong criticism from newly elected President Donald Trump.

Since then, several religious and civil rights groups have demanded that the commander-in-chief reduce sentences for as many as 40 prisoners facing execution.

The president’s latest plans, which will shock an America where 53 percent of the population support the death penalty, were first reported by the US government. Wall Street Journal.

Attorney General Merrick Garland, who oversees federal prisons, is said to have recommended that the president omit all but a handful of cases involving terrorism and hate crimes.

Criminals who could benefit from the schemes include: Dylann Roof, who murdered nine people at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston in 2015; Iouri Mikhel, who was convicted of the 2007 murders and kidnappings for ransom of five Russian and Georgian immigrants; Thomas Sanders, who was sentenced to death for the kidnapping and death of a 12-year-old girl; and Daniel Troya, who killed two children in drug-related killings in 2009.

Prisoners less likely to receive any leniency include Dzhokhar Tsarnaev – convicted of killing three and injuring more than 250 people by causing the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and Robert Bowers, who killed 11 people in 2018 the attack on the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.

If their death sentences were commuted, the prisoners would serve life without parole.

A White House spokesperson confirmed that no final decision has been made at this time. The Ministry of Justice has not yet commented on the situation.

People close to Biden, whose term ends in January 2025, believe a decision could come on Christmas Day.

In addition to the 40 death row inmates held by the Justice Department, there are four other inmates on Army death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

It remains unclear whether a potential commutation would include the unregistered inmates or how Biden’s potential decision could affect pending cases that could lead to a death sentence — including that of Luigi Mangione, who faces federal charges in the alleged murder of healthcare executive Brian Thompson.

During his three decades in the Senate, Biden supported the death penalty — a position that long put him at odds with the teachings of his Catholic faith.

However, this changed during his 2020 presidential campaign. He vowed to push Congress to abolish the federal death penalty.

Although this law was never created, Garland managed to stop the practice when he issued a moratorium on studying the way people are put to death. TIME.

With the possibility of a pardon looming, Republicans are beginning to express shock and disgust at the decision.

“It would mean that progressive politics is more important to the president than the lives these killers take.

“It would mean that society’s strongest condemnation of white supremacy and anti-Semitism would give way to legal mumbo jumbo,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said, referring to Bowers and Roof’s motives in a Dec. 18 speech.

And it appears the Republican sentiment is being felt by many Americans across the country.

According to October 2024 poll produced by GallupAbout 53 percent of Americans remain in favor of the death penalty.

Data also shows that support for the death penalty has remained stable among Republicans over the past 25 years, but has shifted among Democrats and Independents.

But despite this, Biden has already commuted the sentences of 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others in the largest act of clemency ever in the US.

The names of the people involved have not been released, but the pardons are for those convicted of non-violent crimes.

The commutation was announced for those placed under home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Biden said these people would have received shorter sentences if charged under current laws, policies and practices.

“As President, I have the great privilege of extending mercy to people who have demonstrated repentance and rehabilitation, giving Americans the opportunity to participate in daily life and contribute to their communities, and to take steps to address disparities in sentencing for non-violent offenders, especially those convicted of drug crimes,” Biden said.

The pardon comes more than a week after the president faced criticism for pardoning his own son Hunter for his federal crimes.

Officials said last week that the White House was listening to demands for Biden to grant the same pardons to thousands of people wronged by the U.S. justice system.

Sources had told Reuters last week that the pardons under discussion also included those convicted of non-violent drug offenses and people identified by civil rights groups as wrongfully imprisoned.

Biden said he would take more steps in the coming weeks and continue to review clemency requests.

The second largest act of clemency in a single day was by Barack Obama, with 330, shortly before he left office in 2017.