Biden commutes death sentence of man who killed Noel banker, stomped another inmate to death

By Ashley Murray

States Newsroom

President Joe Biden commuted the sentences on Monday of 37 death row inmates, citing his conscience as a force behind the decision. He also left the death sentences unchanged for three men charged with hate-motivated mass shootings and terrorism.

Biden, who imposed a moratorium on federal executions during his administration, commuted the death sentences to life sentences without the possibility of parole, saying in a statement that he’s dedicated his career “to reducing violent crime and ensuring a fair and effective justice system.”

(Note: Among the 37 death row inmates whose sentences President Biden were commuted is Shannon Agofsky, who was on death row for the 2004 stomping death of another inmate and killed Noel banker Daniel Short during a 1989 bank robbery.)

“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. In good conscience, I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted.”

The three men Biden left on death row Monday include Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, sentenced in 2015 of bombing the Boston Marathon in 2013; Dylann Roof, sentenced in 2017 of fatally shooting nine members of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in 2015 in Charleston, South Carolina; and Robert Bowers, sentenced in 2023 for the deadly shooting in 2018 that killed 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh.

The president’s commutations Monday come after he commuted the sentences on Dec. 12 of 1,500 people who were placed in home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic. He also granted pardons for 39 individuals convicted of nonviolent crimes.

Biden received criticism from Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and others for including among the mass commutations a Pennsylvania judge convicted in 2011 of sending children to prison in exchange for millions of dollars in kickbacks from a private jail — a crime that became known in the commonwealth as the “Cash for Kids” scheme.

Advocates for abolishing the death penalty and some U.S. House Democrats had pressured Biden to commute death penalty sentences ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Trump expedited some executions during his first term.

In a statement, Trump transition spokesman Steven Cheung blasted the commutations.

“These are among the worst killers in the world and this abhorrent decision by Joe Biden is a slap in the face to the victims, their families, and their loved ones,” Cheung wrote. “President Trump stands for the rule of law, which will return when he is back in the White House after he was elected with a massive mandate from the American people.”

According to the White House, the names of the death row inmates whose sentences were commuted Monday are:

Shannon Wayne Agofsky


Billie Jerome Allen


Aquilia Marcivicci Barnette


Brandon Leon Basham

Anthony George Battle


Meier Jason Brown


Carlos David Caro


Wesley Paul Coonce, Jr.


Brandon Michael Council


Christopher Emory Cramer


Len Davis


Joseph Ebron


Ricky Allen Fackrell


Edward Leon Fields, Jr.


Chadrick Evan Fulks


Marvin Charles Gabrion, II


Edgar Baltazar Garcia


Thomas Morocco Hager


Charles Michael Hall


Norris G. Holder


Richard Allen Jackson


Jurijus Kadamovas


Daryl Lawrence


Iouri Mikhel


Ronald Mikos


James H. Roane, Jr.


Julius Omar Robinson


David Anthony Runyon


Ricardo Sanchez, Jr.


Thomas Steven Sanders


Kaboni Savage


Mark Isaac Snarr


Rejon Taylor


Richard Tipton


Jorge Avila Torrez


Daniel Troya


Alejandro Enrique Ramirez Umaña