Status: 02.07.2021 4:02 a.m.
US President Biden’s administration has suspended executions at the federal level for the time being. Justice Minister Garland announced the moratorium. Biden’s predecessor Trump allowed executions.
The US government has passed a moratorium on executions at the federal level. As Justice Secretary Merrick Garland announced, no death sentences will be carried out in federal prisons until a review of his department is completed.
There are “serious concerns” about the use of the death penalty, Garland wrote in a memo. He referred to possible “arbitrariness”, the disproportionate concern of blacks and the “worrying” number of wrong judgments. The Justice Ministry must ensure that the federal justice system treats everyone constitutionally and legally, but also fairly and humanely, Garland said.
Biden wants to abolish the death penalty entirely
Under ex-President Donald Trump, the US government decided last July after a 17-year hiatus to enforce death sentences through the federal judiciary again. As of January, 13 death row inmates had been executed in federal prisons, the last three just days before Trump’s successor Joe Biden took office.
In the United States, the death penalty is carried out in many states. At the federal level, on the other hand, the death penalty was imposed between 2003 and July 2020, but no longer carried out.
Attorney General Garland has now ordered a review of the execution policy changes enforced by the Trump administration. Among other things, it is to be investigated whether the substance pentobarbital used in lethal injection causes pain and agony at high risk. In addition, regulations are to be examined that should speed up executions. The newly introduced option of being able to fall back on the methods and personnel of the states during executions is also to be scrutinized.
Biden rejects the death penalty. He has announced that he will work with Congress to get it abolished at the federal level.