USA | Two federal inmates challenge Biden’s clemency, refuse commutation of death sentences

In an unusual move, two prisoners who are among the 37 federal inmates whose death sentences were commuted by President Joe Biden in December have refused to sign paperwork accepting his clemency action

Two federal inmates, Shannon Agofsky and Len Davis, are refusing to accept outing US President Joe Biden’s decision to commute their death sentences to life imprisonment without parole. Their refusal comes after Biden commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates last month, sparing them from execution.

Both men, housed at the US Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana, have filed emergency motions in federal court to block the commutations.

Inmates argue commutation hurts legal appeals

Agofsky and Davis claim that the commutation undermines their ability to appeal their convictions under heightened scrutiny, a legal standard that courts apply to death penalty cases due to their life-and-death stakes.

“To commute his sentence now, while the defendant has active litigation in court, is to strip him of the protection of heightened scrutiny,” Agofsky’s filing stated.

“This constitutes an undue burden and leaves the defendant in a position of fundamental unfairness,” his filing further mentioned.

Davis echoed these concerns, writing in his motion that the commutation would diminish attention to what he alleges is misconduct in his case. “The case law on this issue is quite murky,” Davis added, thanking the court for its “prompt attention to this fast-moving constitutional conundrum.”

Legal experts say challenge faces hurdles

Legal scholars note that inmates have little chance of successfully reversing a presidential commutation. A 1927 US Supreme Court ruling established that the president has unilateral authority to grant clemency without the convict’s consent.

A report by NBC News quoted Dan Kobil, a constitutional law professor at Capital University, as explaining that while some prisoners have refused commutations in the past, courts view such decisions as being in the public interest.

“Just as we impose sentences for the public welfare, the president commutes sentences for the public welfare,” Kobil said.

Details of the cases

Agofsky, 53, was convicted in the 1989 murder of an Oklahoma bank president, Dan Short, during a robbery. While serving a life sentence, he was convicted of the 2001 murder of fellow inmate Luther Plant and sentenced to death in 2004. He maintains his innocence in both cases.

His wife, Laura Agofsky, whom he married over the phone in 2019, said he refused to request clemency because his death sentence status provides him with legal counsel critical to his appeals. “He doesn’t want to die in prison being labeled a cold-blooded killer,” she said.

Davis, 60, a former New Orleans police officer, was sentenced to death for orchestrating the 1994 murder of Kim Groves. Prosecutors said Davis hired a drug dealer to kill Groves after she filed a misconduct complaint against him. Davis maintains his innocence and argues that federal courts lacked jurisdiction in his case.

Biden’s clemency decision sparks mixed reactions

Biden commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates, citing his opposition to the death penalty. “I cannot stand back and let a new administration resume executions that I halted,” the US President said.

His administration had previously imposed a moratorium on federal executions.

While Biden’s decision was praised by anti-death penalty advocates, it faced backlash from some quarters. The Office of the Independent Police Monitor in New Orleans criticised the commutation of Davis’ sentence, calling it “a painful reminder that justice is not always served as it should be.”

“In this action, President Biden showed more mercy for Davis than this corrupt officer ever showed for Kim Groves, her children and family, and the people of New Orleans,” the office said.

Agofsky & Davis continue legal fight

Both inmates are now requesting co-counsel to assist in their legal motions to block the commutations. Despite the challenges, their cases remain ongoing.

Source: firstpost.com, Staff, January 7, 2025

_____________________________________________________________________

Twitter/X | Instagram | Telegram | Contact Us

"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted."

— Oscar Wilde

Comments

Singapore executes three drug mules over two days

Singapore hanged three people for drug offences last week, bringing the total number of executions to 17 this year - the highest since 2003. These come a week before a constitutional challenge against the death penalty for drug offences is due to be heard. Singapore has some of the world's harshest anti-drug laws, which it says are a necessary deterrent to drug crime, a major issue elsewhere in South East Asia. Anyone convicted of trafficking - which includes selling, giving, transporting or administering - more than 15g of diamorphine, 30g of cocaine, 250g of methamphetamine and 500g of cannabis in Singapore will be handed the death sentence.

Florida | After nearly 50 years on death row, Tommy Zeigler seeks final chance at freedom

The Winter Garden Police chief was at a party on Christmas Eve 1975 when he received a phone call from his friend Tommy Zeigler, the owner of a furniture store on Dillard Street. “I’ve been shot, please hurry,” Zeigler told the chief as he struggled for breath. When police arrived at the store, Zeigler, 30, managed to unlock the door and then collapsed “with a gaping bullet hole through his lower abdomen,” court records show. In the store, detectives found a gruesome, bloody crime scene and several guns. Four other people — Zeigler’s wife, his in-laws and a laborer — lay dead.

Louisiana death row inmate freed after nearly 30 years as overturned conviction upends case

A Louisiana man who spent nearly 30 years on death row walked out of prison Wednesday after a judge overturned his conviction and granted him bail. Jimmie Duncan, now in his 60s, was sentenced to death in 1998 for the alleged rape and drowning of his girlfriend’s 23-month-old daughter, Haley Oliveaux — a case long clouded by disputed forensic testimony. His release comes months after a state judge ruled that the evidence prosecutors used to secure the conviction was unreliable and rooted in discredited bite-mark analysis.

Oklahoma board recommends clemency for inmate set to be executed next week

A voting board in Oklahoma decided Wednesday to recommend clemency for Tremane Wood, a death row inmate who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection next week at the state penitentiary in McAlester. Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf, a migrant farmworker, at an Oklahoma City hotel on New Year's Eve, court records show. The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state's top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood's clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Vietnam | Woman sentenced to death for poisoning 4 family members with cyanide

A woman in Dong Nai Province in southern Vietnam was sentenced to death on Thursday for killing family members including two young children in a series of cyanide poisonings that shocked her community. The Dong Nai People's Court found 39-year-old Nguyen Thi Hong Bich guilty of murder and of illegally possessing and using toxic chemicals. Judges described her actions as "cold-blooded, inhumane and calculated," saying Bich exploited the trust of her victims and "destroyed every ethical bond within her family."

Afghanistan | Two Sons Of Executed Man Also Face Death Penalty, Says Taliban

The Taliban governor’s spokesperson in Khost said on Tuesday that two sons of a man executed earlier that day have also been sentenced to death. Their executions, he said, have been postponed because the heir of the victims is not currently in Afghanistan. Mostaghfer Gurbaz, spokesperson for the Taliban governor in Khost, also released details of the charges against the man executed on Tuesday, identified as Mangal. He said Mangal was accused of killing members of a family.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers carry out public execution in sports stadium

The man had been convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including children, and was executed by one of their relatives, according to police. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities carried out the public execution of a man on Tuesday convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including several children, earlier this year. Tens of thousands of people attended the execution at a sports stadium in the eastern city of Khost, which the Supreme Court said was the eleventh since the Taliban seized power in 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of US and NATO forces.

Utah | Ralph Menzies dies on death row less than 3 months after his execution was called off

Judge was set to consider arguments in December about Menzies’ mental fitness Ralph Menzies, who spent more than 3 decades on Utah’s death row for the 1986 murder of Maurine Hunsaker, has died. Menzies, 67, died of “presumed natural causes at a local hospital” Wednesday afternoon, according to the Utah Department of Corrections. Matt Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker’s son, said Menzies’ death “was a complete surprise.” “First off, I’d say that I’m numb. And second off, I would say, grateful,” Hunsaker told Utah News Dispatch. “I’m grateful that my family does not have to endure this for the holidays.”

Iran carries out public hanging of "double-rapist"

Iran on Tuesday publicly executed a man after convicting him of raping two women in the northern province of Semnan. The execution was carried out in the town of Bastam after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict, the judiciary's official outlet Mizan Online reported. Mizan cited the head of the provincial judiciary, Mohammad Akbari, as saying the ruling had been 'confirmed and enforced after precise review by the Supreme Court'. The provincial authority said the man had 'deceived two women and committed rape by force and coercion', adding that he used 'intimidation and threats' to instil fear of reputational harm in the victims.

Burkina Faso to bring back death penalty

Burkina Faso's military rulers will bring back the death penalty, which was abolished in 2018, the country's Council of Ministers announced on Thursday. "This draft penal code reinstates the death penalty for a number of offences, including high treason, acts of terrorism, acts of espionage, among others," stated the information service of the Burkinabe government. Burkina Faso last carried out an execution in 1988.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog