Former President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of several killers on death row at the last minute before leaving office.
Now, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi wants to reverse those decisions and tell state officials to go after the death penalty for the inmates.
Bondi wrote a letter to Department of Justice (DOJ) employees on Wednesday about the commutes. In the letter, she said that Biden’s decision to grant the commutes “undermine[d] our justice system and subvert[ed] the rule of law.”
“The commutations also robbed the victims’ families of the justice promised — and fought hard to achieve — by the Department of Justice,” Bondi wrote. “The Department of Justice is directed to immediately commence the following actions to achieve justice for the victims’ families of the 37 commuted murderers.”
The White House said at the time that the move would stop President-elect Donald Trump’s government from “carrying out the execution sentences that would not be handed down under current policy and practice.”
“They have green light laws, meaning they’re giving a green light to any illegal alien in New York, where law enforcement officers cannot check their identity if they pull them over,” Bondi said. “And law enforcement officers do not have access to their background. And if these great men and women pull over someone and don’t have access to their background, they have no idea who they’re dealing with, and it puts their lives on the line every single day.
“If you don’t comply with federal law, we will hold you accountable,” Bondi said. “We did it to Illinois, strike one. Strike two is New York. And if you are a state not complying with federal law, you’re next. Get ready.”
Last week, the Justice Department asked a federal judge to strike down sanctuary laws in Chicago and Illinois.