Commutations of sentence and acts of clemency
Archive theme
A death sentence can be turned into a prison sentence by an act of clemency: commutation, pardon, amnesty, remission. These rest with heads of state, courts and clemency boards, and not infrequently arrive within hours of an execution.
For the association they are a concrete front: every commutation is a life, and the countries that grant many of them are often the ones closest to a moratorium in fact. This page collects the news on commutations, pardons and acts of clemency.
Latest news
APRIL 12, 2022MalaysiaDEATH PENALTYMALAYSIA: YOUNG WOMAN CONVICTED OF HUSBAND’S MURDER ESCAPES THE GALLOWS
A 22-year-old woman escaped the death penalty in Malaysia on 10 April 2022, when the Muar High Court ordered her to be jailed for a period until pardoned by the Sultan of Johor, after she was found guilty of killing her husband five years ago.
APRIL 11, 2022TexasDEATH PENALTYUSA - Texas. Wave of support for Melissa Lucio
The members of HoC have also signed the appeal
MARCH 31, 2022ArizonaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Arizona. Governor pressed on the issue of the death penalty
If on abortion he is pro-life, then must be against the death penalty
- MARCH 28, 2022TexasDEATH PENALTY
USA - Texas. 87 out of 150 Representatives Call for Clemency for Melissa Lucio
Who risks execution for the probable accidental death of her daughter
MARCH 22, 2022BelizeDEATH PENALTYBELIZE: POSTHUMOUS PARDON PROPOSED FOR NORA PARHAM WHO WAS HANGED OVER 50 YEARS AGO
On 8 March 2022, International Women's Day, Belize’s Cabinet announced that after discussion, Cabinet gave its full support for the proposal from Minister of Human Development, Dolores Balderamos Garcia, for Nora Parham to be granted a posthumous pardon s
- MARCH 21, 2022United KingdomDEATH PENALTY
SCOTLAND: GOVERNMENT APOLOGIZES FOR WOMEN KILLED FOR WITCHCRAFT
Scotland’s Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon on 8 March 2022 in Edinburgh issued an official government pardon for thousands of women convicted of witchcraft in XVI and XVII Centuries and were killed “simply because they were women.
MARCH 18, 2022FloridaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Florida. Cornelius Baker’s Death Sentence Commuted to Life In Prison
MARCH 3, 2022Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTYSAUDI ARABIA: COMMUTED DEATH SENTENCE FOR MAN CONVICTED AS MINOR REINSTATED
A Saudi man sentenced to death for crimes reportedly committed when he was a minor, only to see the judgement overturned last year, had his death sentence reinstated on 2 March 2022, according to his family.
FEBRUARY 10, 2022NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: TWO PERSONS SENTENCED TO DEATH FOR KILLING SEX WORKER
A State High Court, Ontisha, Anambra State, on 9 February 2022 sentenced two men to death for killing a sex worker.
- FEBRUARY 7, 2022Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTY
SAUDI ARABIA RELEASES SHIA MINOR AFTER COMMUTING HIS DEATH SENTENCE
Saudi Arabia on 2 February 2022 freed Dawoud Al-Marhoon who had previously been sentenced to death for protesting while he was a minor.
FEBRUARY 4, 2022IdahoDEATH PENALTYUSA - Idaho. Gerald Pizzuto’s death sentence reduced to life in prison
Ruling with far-reaching implications
JANUARY 25, 2022KenyaDEATH PENALTYKENYA: MAN WHO VIOLENTLY STOLE PHONES, CASH SENTENCED TO DEATH
A man accused of using excessive force to steal mobile phones and some cash from two city businessmen has been sentenced to death, Nairobi News reported on 21 January 2022.
JANUARY 24, 2022NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: BENUE STATE GOVERNOR ORTOM GRANTS AMNESTY TO 50 CONVICTS
Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has granted amnesty to 50 convicts serving various jail terms across the country.
JANUARY 23, 2022IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: TWO SISTERS ON DEATH ROW SPARED THE NOOSE BY BOMBAY HC
Observing that state machinery showed “laxity and indifference” in deciding their mercy plea, the Bombay High Court, in Maharashtra state,n on 18 January 2022 commuted the death sentences awarded to sisters Renuka Shinde and Seema Gavit to life imprisonme
JANUARY 10, 2022EgyptDEATH PENALTYEGYPT: COURT OF CASSATION COMMUTES DEATH PENALTY AGAINST SIX IN 2016 TERRORIST ATTACK NEAR PYRAMIDS
Egypt’s Court of Cassation on 2 January 2022 commuted the death penalty against six defendants charged with being involved in a terrorist attack on the Three Pyramids Hotel in Giza in 2016.
- JANUARY 2, 2022DEATH PENALTY
NIGERIA: ONDO STATE GOVERNOR COMMUTES DEATH SENTENCE OF SIX CONVICTS TO LIFE IMPRISONMENT
Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State has ordered the release of four inmates serving various terms of imprisonment from the correctional centres in the state, while six convicts sentenced to death by hanging were commuted to life imprisonment to mark t
- DECEMBER 12, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: SC COMMUTES DEATH SENTENCE OF CONVICT WHO KILLED 2 SIBLINGS, NEPHEW
The Supreme Court of India on 10 December 2021 commuted the death sentence of a convict for the murder of his two siblings and nephew over a property dispute, stating that the court should take into account the criminal's state of mind along with the crim
DECEMBER 9, 2021OklahomaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Oklahoma. Bigler Stouffer executed on December 9, 2021
The 11th inmate executed this year in the US
- DECEMBER 5, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTY
INDIA: MAN ESCAPES GALLOWS IN SODOMY OF BOY WHO LATER DIED
The Madras high court on 3 December 2021 commuted the death sentence awarded to a man to 30 years of imprisonment in a case where the man had sexually assaulted and caused the death of a 17-year-old mentally challenged boy in Pudukottai district in 2019.
NOVEMBER 25, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: MUMBAI'S HIGH COURT COMMUTES DEATH SENTENCES IN RAPE CASE
Mumbai's High Court on 25 November 2021 commuted the death sentences of three men convicted in a rape case that heightened public outrage over women's safety in India.
- NOVEMBER 21, 2021DEATH PENALTY
OKLAHOMA (USA): GOVERNOR GRANTS CLEMENCY, SPARES JULIUS JONES’ LIFE
Oklahoma’s governor spared the life of Julius Jones on 18 November 2021, just hours before his scheduled execution that had drawn widespread outcry and protests over doubts about his guilt in the slaying of a businessman more than 20 years ago.
NOVEMBER 18, 2021OklahomaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Oklahoma. Governor Grants Clemency to Julius Jones
- NOVEMBER 14, 2021TaiwanDEATH PENALTY
TAIWAN: HIGH COURT COMMUTES MOTHER'S DEATH SENTENCE FOR MURDERING CHILDREN TO LIFE IN PRISON
Taiwan High Court on 11 November 2021 issued a ruling resentencing a woman facing the death penalty to life in prison for the murders of her two children, citing the perpetrator's depression and remorse.
NOVEMBER 12, 2021AlabamaDEATH PENALTYUSA - Alabama. Judge orders Alabama Heath Lavon McCray taken off death row
NOVEMBER 11, 2021IndiaDEATH PENALTYINDIA: SUPREME COURT STATES RAPE, MURDER VICTIMS' AGE INSUFFICIENT FOR DEATH PENALTY
Low age of victims in rape-and-murder cases has not been considered as the "only or sufficient factor by this court" for imposing the death penalty, the Supreme Court said on 10 November 2021.
- NOVEMBER 1, 2021OklahomaDEATH PENALTY
USA - Oklahoma. Parole Board Again Recommends Commuting Julius Jones’ Death Sentence
The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-1
OCTOBER 28, 2021Saudi ArabiaDEATH PENALTYSAUDI ARABIA: ALI AL-NIMR RELEASED FROM PRISON AFTER NEARLY A DECADE
A young Saudi man was released from prison on 27 October 2021 after spending nearly a decade behind bars in a case that drew international scrutiny because until recently he’d been facing a possible death sentence for protest-related crimes committed as a
OCTOBER 21, 2021IndiaDEATH BY PUNISHMENTINDIA: DEATH ROW TAKES HUGE MENTAL TOLL ON PRISONERS, REVEALS REPORT
The long incarceration and time spent agonising over the death penalty takes a heavy toll on prisoners who suffer from psychiatric illnesses and intellectual disability, according to a new study conducted in India.
OCTOBER 8, 2021IranDEATH PENALTYIRAN - Women and the Death Penalty in Iran
A 12 Year Analysis
OCTOBER 6, 2021NigeriaDEATH PENALTYNIGERIA: GOVERNOR AKEREDOLU PARDONS 18 CONVICTED INMATES IN ONDO
The Ondo state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, has granted state pardons to 18 convicts in celebration of Nigeria’s 61st independence anniversary.