‘I Watched My Mother Be Murdered’: Family Reacts To Biden Commuting Killer’s Death Sentence

On Monday, President Biden announced he was commuting the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal death row inmates, one of whom was a criminal who murdered two female South Carolina bank employees in 2017.

Brandon Council murdered 59-year-old Donna Major and 36-year-old Katie Skeen in an armed robbery on August 21, 2017, at Crescom Bank in Conway, South Carolina. Major’s family reacted to the commutation of Council’s sentence on Fox News.

"Desperate, hurt, vulnerable. Katie Skeen and Donna Major died staring down the barrel of that man's gun. He shot them five times. Five times he put bullet after bullet into their injured, dying bodies," U.S. Attorney Everett McMillan told the jury. pic.twitter.com/uq6WyeUHoS

— Daniel Greenfield – "Hang Together or Separately" (@Sultanknish) December 24, 2024

Asked how she felt after she received the news, Major’s daughter Heather stated, “Anger. Absolute anger. We were told from our prosecution team on Sunday afternoon. I was actually gathered with my in-laws for our family Christmas; my sister was gathered with her in-laws, and we got the call. And I was angry. I’m still angry. I am upset that this is even happening, that one man can make this decision without even talking to the victims; without any regard for what we’ve been through, what we’re going through. I’m completely hurt, frustrated, and angry.”

Asked if she had been given a heads-up that the commutation from the White House would be forthcoming, she responded:

So, in May, we heard that this was a possibility. And at that point, we began writing letters to the pardon attorney. I reached out, requesting an in-person meeting in D.C. and we were refused. They denied our right to have our voices heard. That we’re victims. My mother was murdered at the hands of Brandon Council. They should have heard our story. And all we got was a ten-minute virtual conference, and clearly that fell on deaf ears. They did not want to hear our story.

When Major’s husband Danny was asked whether his wife had been shown any mercy, he replied:

She was shown no mercy at all. This man walked into the bank, never said two words to her, shot her three times in total, went and shot her co-worker, Katie Skeen, as well, who was totally defenseless and unaware of any things happening. It’s just beyond me; I can’t even believe that this is actually happening, commuting of sentences like this of 37 victims. All but three, which was certainly a political scheme … Joe Biden was also told by the Pope that he should stop these executions. That what the Pope has to do with anything in this country, I don’t know, but Joe Biden certainly has no convictions. He’s a senile old man. He couldn’t tie his shoes, I wouldn’t think, if you could see him in person. It’s absolutely disgusting.

Major’s daughter Katie responded to far-Left Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) speaking of Biden’s “compassionate leadership” with regard to the commutations, she commented:

Compassion? I don’t think that that’s compassion. The fact that he didn’t talk to any of us, the victims of this crime? We trusted the judicial system. We sat through court. I watched my mother be murdered; I watched images of her body laying on the ground. He does not have compassion. For who? A criminal? A criminal? No. I don’t agree with that. I don’t agree with that at all.