RALEIGH, NC (AP) – In one of his last acts in office, Gov. North Carolina’s Roy Cooper commuted the death sentences of 15 men convicted of murder to life in prison without parole on Tuesday, reducing the state’s sentence. the death toll is over 10%.
Cooper, who was blocked from seeking a third term for four consecutive terms, will open for fellow Democrat Josh Stein on Wednesday when Stein is sworn into office.
Cooper, who served as attorney general for 16 years, said his decision to change came after a thorough review of the complaints filed by the defendants and input from prosecutors and the victims’ families.
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Before Tuesday, North Carolina had 136 cases on the death list. Cooper’s office said it had received 89 clemency requests.
Cooper’s office said it considers a variety of factors, such as a defendant’s behavior in prison, the suitability of legal representation and the sentences the defendants receive.
“These revisions are among the most difficult decisions a Governor can make and the death penalty is the most severe sentence the state can impose,” Cooper said in a news release. “After careful consideration, reflection and prayer, I concluded that the death sentence given to these 15 people should be revoked, ensuring that they will spend the rest of their lives in prison.”
North Carolina is one of 27 states that have the death penalty as a punishment for crimes, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, although the governors of five of those states have suspended executions. While North Carolina is not one of those five, an execution has not been carried out in the state since 2006.
The number of defendants sentenced to death in North Carolina has also declined in recent years, as prosecutors have more freedom under state law to decide whether to pursue capital cases. Even after Tuesday’s action, North Carolina has the fifth largest death toll in the country, according to the North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty.
Although some groups against the death penalty have demanded from Cooper a complete commutation of all those who will be sentenced, they are still praising him for what they call a historic act of compassion. State Department of Corrections records list 13 of the 15 parolees as Black. The conviction dates range from 15 from 1993 to 2011.
Cooper “joins a group of courageous leaders who are using their authority to confront the failed death penalty,” said Chantal Stevens, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina, in a separate statement. “We have long known that the death penalty in North Carolina is discriminatory, unjust, and immoral, and the Governor’s actions today pave the way for our state to move toward a new era of justice.”
Cooper has received national attention this year as he emerged as a potential running mate for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
Stein succeeded Cooper as attorney general in 2017. The Attorney General’s Office is involved in death penalty appeals.
Among the 15 who were commuted on Tuesday was Hasson Bacote, who was convicted of murder in 2009 in Johnston County.
Bacote had contested his death sentence under the Racial Justice Act of 2009, which allowed inmates to receive life in prison without parole if they could show that racism was the reason for their death sentence. While the law was struck down in 2013, the state Supreme Court later ruled that many inmates currently on death row could still use the law retroactively.
Bacote’s recent trial before a judge based on that law was considered a test case. Groups supporting Bacote’s trial said on Tuesday that they were still awaiting a decision on his case due to widespread public interest in the matter.
Another inmate who had his sentence revoked was Guy LeGrande, who was scheduled to be executed in late 2006 before a judge suspended the sentence. She was convicted in Stanley County of murdering a woman in 1993 whose estranged husband promised to pay her half of her life insurance. LeGrande’s lawyers say he is mentally unstable.
Another death row inmate, Christopher Roseboro, was convicted of murder and rape in the 1992 death of a 72-year-old Gastonia woman.
Last week, President Joe Biden announced that he was going to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on the government’s power list, changing their sentences to life imprisonment.
Separately Tuesday, Cooper announced that he had commuted the sentences of two inmates convicted of murder so they could be released sooner. One defendant served 34 years, the other served 27 years.
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