FARGO (KFGO) – As the Department of Justice continues to review a request by defense attorneys to drop the death penalty for Alfonzo Rodriguez, Jr., Judge Ralph Erickson asked both sides to consider next steps in the case, regardless of the outcome of Attorney General Merrick Garland’s decision.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys said they’ve reached a deal to proceed at a status hearing this morning.
“The Justice Manual doesn’t prescribe any sort of deadline for the Attorney General to make a decision on the withdrawal request, and so the proposal today was to submit a scheduling order within 60 days of the Attorney General’s decision, if in fact the withdrawal request is not granted,” said U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider.
Rodriguez’s defense attorney Victor Abreu said most reviews are taking about six months, which would mean a decision would come this spring. Erickson said that would put the trial date for re-sentencing in July of 2024.
If the withdrawal request is granted, Schneider says, there will be no further death penalty proceedings in the case.
There appears to be growing precedent the request to withdraw the death penalty could be granted. Abreu said the DOJ under Garland has granted 21 of 22 similar requests, even for “highly-aggravated” cases – such as that of Rodriguez, who was convicted in 2006 of kidnapping and murdering 22-year-old college student Dru Sjodin in Grand Forks in 2003.
Rodriguez was sentenced to the death penalty in 2007 but Judge Erickson overturned the sentence due in part to misleading testimony by the medical examiner, and ordered the new sentencing phase in 2021.