Federal Government Announces Withdrawal of Intent to Seek Death in North Dakota Case

On March 14, 2023, at the direction of Attorney General Merrick Garland (pictured), the U.S. Attorney for the District of North Dakota withdrew the notice of intent to seek a death sentence for Alfonso Rodriguez, Jr., who had been convicted in 2006 of the 2003 kidnapping and killing of college student Dru Sjodin. Rodriguez had originally been sentenced to death in 2007, but U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Erickson reversed the death sentence because of misleading testimony presented at trial from the coroner and failures of defense counsel to explore mental health issues.

Judge Erickson concluded the medical examiner was “guessing” on the stand and that his testimony was “unreliable, misleading and inaccurate.” Regarding the defense attorneys, the judge said that not fully exploring the mental health of their client, including evidence of severe post-traumatic stress disorder, may have cost him a possible insanity defense. Rodriguez will now serve a life sentence without parole.

The decision to withdraw the government’s intent to seek death came one day after a federal jury in New York City announced it could not reach a verdict for death in the trial of Sayfullo Saipov, who had murdered eight people in an act of terrorism. Saipov will now receive a sentence of life without parole for the crime. Garland had earlier announced a hold on all federal executions while the process is being re-examined.

California to Close San Quentin’s Death Row as Part of a Broader Prison Reform

Death-sentenced prisoners in California will be moved out of San Quentin State Prison (pictured) and placed in other maximum security facilities, as part of a broad plan announced by Governor Gavin Newsom on March 17, 2023. The governor seeks to “transform” the state’s oldest prison into “a one-of-a-kind facility focused on improving public safety through rehabilitation and education.” The state launched a pilot program in 2020 allowing some death-row prisoners to voluntarily move to other state prisons. Under that program, more than 100 death-row prisoners have already been transferred out of San Quentin. The move does not reduce the prisoners’ sentences.

Under the existing program, death-row prisoners are “carefully screened to determine whether they can safely participate” in the transfer, according to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. That has included a review of prisoners’ behavioral records, medical and psychiatric needs, and other safety concerns. Their conditions of incarceration would then be similar to that of prisoners serving life without parole, which include the opportunity to participate in prison employment and other rehabilitation activities. Nevertheless, advocates have emphasized the need to guarantee transferred prisoners’ accessibility to counsel, the courts, and appropriate health care.

Governor Newsom imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019. Although the state has the nation’s largest death-row population, it has not carried out an execution since 2006.

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