A convicted killer has asked to go free after President Joe Biden commuted his death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
As Breitbart News reported, Biden commuted the sentences of 37 inmates on death row, reducing them to life in prison without parole; the inmates were not given a full pardon.
President Joe Biden has acted 28 days before he leaves office to commute the sentences of 37 of 40 individuals on federal death row, converting their punishments to life imprisonment.
AP reports a long list of convicted offenders will be spared after they were sentenced for a range of criminal acts including the slayings of police and military officers, people on federal land and those involved in deadly bank robberies or drug deals, as well as the killings of guards or prisoners in federal facilities.
At the time of his decision, the departing president said the commutations stand in line with his desire for a “fair and effective justice system.”
“I’ve dedicated my career to reducing violent crime and ensuring a fair and effective justice system,” Biden said.
“Today, I am commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 individuals on federal death row to life sentences without the possibility of parole. These commutations are consistent with the moratorium my administration has imposed on federal executions, in cases other than terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder,” he added.
As it turns out, the commutation was not strong enough for convicted murderer Brandon Council, who has called for a compassionate release, arguing that he has been subjected to “severe, unnecessary, and unjustifiable psychological harm” by being in prison. Per QC News:
Council was convicted in September 2019 in the 2017 double murders of Crescom Bank employees Donna Major and Katie Skeen after a three-week trial. The next month in federal court, he was sentenced to death. Council was among 37 federal inmates on death row who had their sentences commuted to life on Monday.
In the motion, filed Friday in US District Court in Florence, Council argues for a compassionate release because he’s been subjected to “severe, unnecessary, and unjustifiable psychological harm” that “can only be accurately construed and assimilated as an act of torture” since he was permanently housed to solitary confinement on Nov. 4, 2019.
The Journal of Ethics defines a compassionate release as a mercy for inmates facing debilitating illnesses or disabilities usually under the condition that care for such inmates are difficult-to-impossible while in prison.
“The petitioner’s subjection to torture is the subsequent result of the petitioner’s sentence to death, however, the additional punishment of solitary confinement which is the cause of the psychological harm is in no manner statutorily authorized, mandated, or required by the petitioner’s sentence to death,” the motion read. “Within the jurisdiction of the United States it is both illegal and unconstitutional to inflict or subject any person to torture as a punitive consequence for a crime a party has been duly convicted of.”
Paul Roland Bois directed the award-winning Christian tech thriller, EXEMPLUM, which has a 100% Rotten Tomatoes critic rating and can be viewed for FREE on YouTube, Tubi, or Fawesome TV. “Better than Killers of the Flower Moon,” wrote Mark Judge. “You haven’t seen a story like this before,” wrote Christian Toto. A high-quality, ad-free rental can also be streamed on Google Play, Vimeo on Demand, or YouTube Movies. Follow him on X @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.