The United States President-elect, Donald Trump, has criticised outgoing President Joe Biden for commuting the death sentences of 37 federal inmates on death row.
Biden, on Monday, announced that he had reduced the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row prisoners to life imprisonment, without the possibility of parole.
The decision comes just weeks before the 46th president is set to leave office.
Among individuals granted commutations include individuals convicted of heinous crimes, such as nine prisoners who murdered fellow inmates, four who killed people during bank robberies, and one who murdered a prison guard.
The president, defending his decision, said the United States must abolish the death penalty at the federal level, except in cases of terrorism and hate-motivated mass murder.
“I’ve dedicated my career to reducing violent crime and ensuring a fair and effective justice system,” Biden said in a statement.
“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.
“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.”
Reacting in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump said “it makes no sense” considering the weight of the crimes they have committed.
He added, “Joe Biden just commuted the Death Sentence on 37 of the worst killers in our Country.
“When you hear the acts of each, you won’t believe that he did this. Makes no sense.
“Relatives and friends are further devastated. They can’t believe this is happening!” he said.
Biden had previously placed a moratorium on the federal death penalty and faced pressure to take further action before leaving office on January 20.
He, however, chose not to commute the sentences of three notorious death row inmates, one of the perpetrators of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, the gunman responsible for killing 11 Jewish worshippers in a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, and the white supremacist who murdered nine Black churchgoers in Charleston in 2015.
Trump promised to reinstate the federal death penalty, declaring that America “will be a Nation of Law and Order again!”
“I will direct the Justice Department to vigorously pursue the death penalty to protect American families and children from violent rapists, murderers, and monsters,” he said.