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Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

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The mystery of Joe Biden’s views about capital punishment has finally been solved. His decision to grant clemency to 37 of the 40 people on federal death row shows the depth of his opposition to the death penalty. And his decision to leave three of America’s most notorious killers to be executed by a future administration shows the limits of his abolitionist commitment. The three men excluded from Biden’s mass clemency—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers—would no doubt pose a severe test of anyone’s resolve to end the death penalty. Biden failed that test.
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South Dakota's First Execution in 60 Years Involves Young "Volunteer"

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On July 11, South Dakota carried out its first execution in 60 years, marking only the 15th time the state has carried out a death sentence since 1877.

The state executed 25-year-old Elijah Page after he dropped all appeals and volunteered to die by lethal injection. Page was only 18 at the time of his crime and had a long history of being abused. During his trial, the presiding judge noted, "Most parents treated their pets better than your parents treated you."

Page's decision to drop his appeals meant that his execution was carried out under new lethal injection protocols that have not been examined by the courts.

Since U.S. executions resumed in 1977, 127 inmates have been executed after dropping their appeals.

South Dakota is one of ten states with the death penalty that have carried out only 1 or no executions since reinstating capital punishment.

Source : Death Penalty Information Center
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