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Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares criticized President Biden after he granted clemency to the “Waverly Two,” who they said admitted to the 1998 slaying of a Sussex County police officer .
“I am beyond outraged and in complete disbelief President Biden would announce it clemency for Ferrone Claiborne and Terence Richardson, two men who admitted to being responsible for brutally killing Officer Allen Gibson, a hero and dedicated servant of our community,” Youngkin said in a statement.
“What makes this even more inconceivable is that Biden’s U.S. attorney advised the White House not to commute these convictions because they are violent felons.”
Youngkin said “the pain and sorrow this clemency causes the Gibson family is unimaginable.”
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Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, left, and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares released statements criticizing President Biden for granting clemency to the “Waverly Two,” two men acquitted of the 1998 murder of a Sussex County police officer but sentenced to life in prison in 1998. drug trafficking charges. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images | MANDEL NGAN/Pool via REUTERS)
“To know that the men who killed Officer Gibson will walk free is not only a grave injustice, but a heartbreaking blow to those who continue to mourn his sacrifice. This is despicable; a sad day for justice and for families who trust our system to hold those responsible accountable,” Youngkin said.
Youngkin’s office said Claiborne and Richardson admitted Sussex County Circuit Court of being responsible for Gibson’s brutal murder.
“The evidence presented and the details surrounding Officer Gibson’s death are deeply disturbing and tragic,” Youngkin said.
Youngkin’s office said then-President Obama refused to grant clemency to Claiborne and Richardson.
Under current conditions, both men will be released in July.
“This is despicable. I am beyond outraged and in complete disbelief that President Biden would announce clemency for these two violent criminals,” Youngkin wrote in a post on X.
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Miyares echoed Youngkin’s displeasure and said his office would continue to seek justice for Gibson’s family.
“I am outraged that Biden would grant clemency to cop killers, forcing the fallen officer’s daughter, Crissana, to relive this trauma. Shame on you, Joe Biden and your staff. You forever,” Miyares wrote in a post to X
Miyares also shared a statement from Crissana Gibson, outraged by Biden’s decision.
“I am absolutely outraged by what has happened. My heart is broken to know that the men who killed my father will be released from prison and will be able to walk the streets freely. This is a huge miscarriage of justice and I am completely disgusted by the administration coming out,” he wrote. “The Virginia Attorney General’s office has worked tirelessly to keep these killers behind bars, and I am eternally grateful for their dedication and hard work. I am so disappointed that the shameful Biden administration has failed my family, my father and all the police. Neither my family nor I have ever supported the release of Richardson or Claiborne, and we denounce this decision of the outgoing presidency of Joe Biden and the abuse of the justice system by the Democratic Party.”
Miyares said that on April 25, 1998, 25-year-old Allen Gibson woke up and went to work as a Waverly police officer and never returned home after being shot with his own gun on duty in the woods behind an apartment complex.
“She put on her bulletproof vest and said goodbye to her 8-year-old daughter Crissana. Officer Gibson found Terence Richardson and Ferrone Claiborne involved in a drug deal behind an apartment building. The men they attacked Officer Gibson and Richardson disarmed Officer Gibson and fatally shot him in the stomach just under his bulletproof vest,” Miyares described.
Officials said both Claiborne and Richardson were named suspects and arrested in Gibson’s killing shortly after her death.
Both men are still serving life sentences on a drug-trafficking charge, but were acquitted by a federal jury of the murder and firearms charges.
On Friday morning, Biden announced that he would commute the sentences nearly 2,500 inmates when his presidency ended.
The commutations are for people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses “who are serving disproportionately long sentences” compared to what they would receive if convicted under current law.
However, Biden has come under bipartisan fire for who he has decided to pardon or commute sentences.
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In late December, he chose to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 men on federal death row, helping them escape execution and sending them to life in prison without parole.
Biden also bragged about completing the “One Day’s Largest Mercy Grant” on December 12 when he commuted sentences for 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others, most of whom were already serving home confinement due to decisions made during the COVID-19 era.
Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. Story ideas and tips can be sent to stepheny.price@fox.com
