Donald Trump pledges death penalty for violent criminals

President-elect Donald Trump has strongly criticized Joe Biden for commuting the sentences of nearly all federal death row inmates, promising to reinstate the death penalty to tackle violent crimes if he returns to power.

President Biden on Dec 23 announced the conversion of 37 out of 40 federal death row sentences to life imprisonment without parole, citing his "conscience and experience" in an effort to block the incoming Trump administration from resuming federal executions.

The spared inmates include individuals convicted of heinous crimes such as murdering fellow prisoners, bank robbery killings, and a prison guard's murder.

"Joe Biden just commuted the Death Sentence on 37 of the worst killers in our Country," Trump posted on Truth Social, his social media platform. "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!"

Despite the commutations, Biden excluded three inmates from his order: one of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombers, a gunman responsible for killing 11 Jewish worshippers in 2018, and a white supremacist who murdered nine Black churchgoers in 2015.

Biden’s decision follows his earlier moratorium on federal executions but comes amid mounting pressure to take further action before leaving the White House on January 20. Trump, signaling his intent to resume the practice, emphasized his support for capital punishment as a deterrent against violent crimes.

Trump declared, "We will be a Nation of Law and Order again!" and confirmed plans to direct the Justice Department to "vigorously pursue the death penalty to protect American families and children from violent rapists, murderers, and monsters."

The debate over federal executions remains a contentious issue, with advocates on both sides voicing concerns about justice, safety, and morality in America's criminal justice system.