DURHAM, N.C. (Dec. 31, 2024) – Today, Gov. Roy Cooper made history by commuting 15 death sentences to life without parole – including a Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) client – marking a significant shift away from the death penalty in North Carolina.
His decision comes after increasingly pressing calls for him to use his clemency power, which is unilateral and authorized under the North Carolina Constitution. It also follows President Joe Biden’s action last week commuting nearly all of federal death row (37 of 40 sentences).
Those whose sentences were commuted will not be released from prison but will instead serve life sentences.
“By commuting 15 death row sentences, Gov. Cooper has demonstrated moral courage and leadership. His decisions in these cases not only recognize the deep flaws in our capital punishment system but also appropriately raise important questions about the future of the death penalty in North Carolina,” said Jake Sussman, Interim Chief Counsel for Justice System Reform at Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ). “These commutations demonstrate a straightforward effort, in a handful of cases, to address some of the many injustices that persist in the administration of the death penalty.”
One of Cooper’s commutations was issued to Nasir al-din Siddiq, formerly Lawrence Peterson. Siddiq is represented by Sussman and Sarah Holladay, an attorney based out of Durham. Siddiq was sentenced to death for shooting and killing Jewel Braswell, a Richmond County wife, mother, and shopkeeper, in 1995.
Siddiq expressed his profound regret for his actions that day, and for the sorrow he caused to Braswell’s family and community. At the time of the crime, Siddiq was suffering from major depressive disorder with psychotic features. He was initially deemed incompetent to proceed to trial but was ultimately convicted and sentenced to death in 1996. The jury that sentenced him to death did not know about his history of auditory and visual hallucinations or about the abuse and deprivation he suffered as a child.
Since his incarceration, Siddiq has been a model of rehabilitation. Functionally illiterate upon arrival at prison, Siddiq has pursued intellectual growth and opportunities for introspection. He has not had a single infraction in over a decade. Siddiq’s clemency petition included letters of support from faith leaders and community members who noted his deep commitment to atoning for his past through self-improvement and serving as spiritual counsel to others. He hopes to live his life in such a way as to honor the life he has taken.
“By removing the threat of execution, Governor Cooper has affirmed that although he will spend the rest of his life in prison, Nasir al-din Siddiq’s life has value,” said Holladay.
Sussman added, “we are tremendously grateful to Governor Cooper for his merciful grant of clemency to our client."
North Carolina still has the fifth largest death row in the U.S. with 121 people awaiting executions. The state’s death penalty is notoriously infected by race discrimination and error, is incredibly expensive, and does not keep communities safer.
In addition to Siddiq, the sentences commuted are Darrell Strickland; Hassan Bacote; Iziah Barden; Nathan Bowie; Elrico Fowler; Timothy White; Rayford Burke; Guy LeGrande; Chris Roseboro; Cerron Hooks; Robbie Locklear; Vincent Wooten; James Little; and William Robinson. All but one of those receiving a commutation is a person of color, which is significant because prior to this announcement, over 60% of North Carolina’s death row were people of color.
Each of the commuted cases involve evidence of serious flaws, including racial bias, severe mental illness, and inadequate lawyering. Many of those commuted were younger than 21 years old at the time of their offense (at least eight). Moreover, many of the original prosecutions occurred over 25 years ago, before key reforms were implemented across the state, which have dramatically reduced the number of new death sentences.
Only five people in North Carolina have had their death sentences commuted to life in prison since the modern death penalty was established in 1976. No previous North Carolina governor had commuted more than two death sentences, and all prior commutations occurred just before scheduled executions. In contrast, Gov. Cooper’s decision comes after an 18-year pause in executions.
“121 people remain on North Carolina’s death row,” Sussman said. “Those cases, too, are marked by racial bias, poor lawyering, mental illness, and the arbitrary nature of how the death penalty has been applied in this state. Gov. Cooper’s commitment to fairness and justice in these cases sets a powerful example for future administrations in North Carolina and the nation.”
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Southern Coalition for Social Justice, founded in 2007, partners with communities of color and economically disadvantaged communities in the South to defend and advance their political, social, and economic rights through the combination of legal advocacy, research, organizing, and communications. Learn more at southerncoalition.org and follow our work on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.