Where We Stand, Jan. 19, 2021

Every day, the Commissary Club community engages in important conversations about the issues that matter most to us. Each week, we’ll highlight our community members’ voices as they respond to issues surrounding criminal justice, prison reform, reentry, and more, across the internet.

Federal Executions

This past week, the United States Department of Justice oversaw three federal inmates’ executions- Lisa Montgomery, Corey Johnson, and Dustin Higgs. All three were challenged with appeals and campaigns across social media.

Since July, the federal government has executed 13 people after going 17 years without executing a single person. On Friday, the Supreme Court reserved a ruling by a lower court that halted Dustin Higgs’ impending execution. Justice Sonia Sotomayer criticized the President’s “expedited spree of executions in her dissent.”

Indeed, Trump and the Department of Justice’s decision to go forth with their executions feels especially pointed, considering that president-elect Joe Biden, who will take his oath of office on January 20th, has vowed to suspend the use of the federal death penalty.

Friends of Commissary Club took to social media to share their thoughts on the executions and hopes that the Biden administration will uphold their promise to suspend the practice:

What are your thoughts on this issue? How can Commissary Club work to address it? Join the conversation at www.commissary.club, the exclusive social network for people with criminal records and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. We can’t wait to hear from you.