Federal Death Row Prisoners Granted Clemency by Biden Are Facing Retaliation by Trump
One of former Democratic President Joe Biden’s parting actions was to commute the death sentences of 37 of the 40 federal prisoners on death row. In doing so, he stopped President Donald Trump (R) from initiating another execution spree as he had during his first term. The commutations infuriated Trump, who took the time on Christmas Day of 2024 to post on his social media platform that the formerly condemned could all “GO TO HELL!”
He meant those words and, on his first day of office in January 2025, he took the unprecedented step to issue an Executive Order to demand that the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) “ensure that these offenders are imprisoned consistent with the monstrosity of their crimes and the threats they pose.” And the day Pam Bondi was sworn in as Attorney General, she ordered her staff to follow through.
ADX is the common name for the United States Penitentiary Florence Administrative Maximum Facility. It is a supermax prison stuck in the high desert of Colorado. The harsh conditions there have earned it the nickname, “Alcatraz of the Rockies.” Men entering that prison will find themselves sequestered into a small concrete cell with little to no human contact for 22 hours a day or more. Recreation occurs in tiny “dog runs” that allow just a few paces in any direction. Virtual reality goggles are used to simulate community and outdoor experiences. Even psychological evaluations are performed through steel doors.
The conditions at ADX are demonstrably harsher than those on federal death row. At ADX, phone calls are limited to just 15 minutes, four times per month, as compared to the eight hours per month permitted on death row. One former warden of the prison called ADX a “clean version of hell” and proclaimed living there was “far worse than death.” It is a place designated for people “who have demonstrated an inability to function in a less restrictive environment without being a threat to others.” And it is already the home of eight of the 16 formerly condemned prisoners who are not currently suing the government to avoid being sent there. The rest of the 37 are holding on in death row, no longer condemned but dreading the possibility of ADX, where the BOP has already told them they are going.
The formerly condemned are being sent there irrespective of their disciplinary statuses, even if they have no disciplinary history. Federal law and BOP policy, however, state that people be confined within 500 miles of their home as long as bed availability, programming requirements, and medical or mental health needs can be met. These are typically decided based on a score derived from age, criminal history, and history of violence or escapes. BOP policy also dictates that prisoners must first be considered for other high security prisons before ADX, which does not appear to have happened. In fact, Gary Mohr, who has served as president of the American Correctional Association, told Bolts Magazine that since the 1990s basic corrections policy has been to impose the “least restrictive environment necessary to maintain custody and security of the individual.” He went on to talk about how the recent decision’s rationale was not apparent. “That’s contrary to my correctional understanding of fundamental policy,” he added.
President Trump is not waiting for the courts to decide. Along with the increased confinement, he ordered Bondi to work with the states where the antecedent crimes occurred to bring about state-level death penalty charges.
For at least one prisoner awaiting transfer to ADX with whom Bolts Magazine spoke, the prospect of moving to ADX from death row is a source of anxiety. As he wrote about how the prospect led one of his fellow commutation recipients to attempt suicide, Rejon Taylor said, “A sense of doom hovers ahead as I anticipate being buried alive at ADX.”
Source: Bolts Magazine
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