Heinous double-murderer spared by Biden now wants to be freed

A convicted killer spared the death penalty by President Biden is now pushing for total freedom, arguing that the conditions in his Indiana federal prison amount to torture. Brandon Council, 38, who brutally murdered two South Carolina mothers during a 2017 bank robbery, filed a motion last week demanding “compassionate release” from FCI Terre Haute, claiming his incarceration has caused him “severe psychological harm.”

Council, who received the death penalty in 2019 but had his sentence commuted to life imprisonment by President Biden, described the prison conditions as “inhumane” and “tantamount to illegal torture.” His motion, filed Friday, alleges that his prolonged solitary confinement violates his constitutional rights. “The conditions can only be accurately construed as an act of torture,” Council wrote, according to court filings.

The crimes for which Council was sentenced remain chilling. In August 2017, he entered the CresCom Bank in Conway, South Carolina, with a plan to kill. Without hesitation, he fatally shot 59-year-old Donna Major as she worked behind the counter. Moments later, he gunned down 36-year-old Kathryn Skeen in her office. Both women were mothers. Prosecutors revealed that Council stole $15,000 and fled in a vehicle belonging to one of his victims.

President Biden’s decision to commute Council’s sentence, along with those of 36 other Death Row inmates, sparked outrage. Biden, who has publicly opposed the death penalty, justified the move by calling the crimes “despicable acts” while advocating for a shift toward life imprisonment over execution.

However, the families of Council’s victims were left reeling. Donna Major’s daughter, Heather Turner, expressed her anger during an appearance on Fox & Friends. “I’m still angry. One man made this decision without even consulting the victims’ families. It’s hurtful, frustrating, and beyond comprehension.”

Danny Jenkins, Major’s husband, described the horrifying events that took his wife’s life. “She was shown no mercy. This man walked into the bank, never said a word, and shot her three times. Then he killed her coworker, Katie Skeen, who was completely defenseless.”

Council’s latest motion follows multiple failed attempts to challenge his conditions of confinement. Similar claims were dismissed in 2019, 2022, and 2023. Legal experts note that “compassionate release” is typically reserved for inmates suffering from severe illness or disability, raising doubts about Council’s argument.

The president’s commutation has left only three inmates on federal Death Row, including Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Pittsburgh synagogue shooter Robert Bowers, and Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof.

Former President Donald Trump, who has vowed to reinstate the death penalty if reelected, criticized Biden’s decision, promising to “vigorously pursue justice for victims.”

For now, Council remains in FCI Terre Haute, but his motion underscores a broader debate over justice, punishment, and the limits of presidential clemency.