By USA Daily Now 
THOMAS SANDERS, a convicted child killer whose death sentence was commuted to life in prison by former President JOE BIDEN, is now facing the possibility of capital punishment once again in Louisiana. A federal jury in the Western District of Louisiana convicted SANDERS, now 67, of kidnapping and murdering 12-year-old LEXIS ROBERTS in 2010, marking the first federal death penalty imposed in the district.
In 2021, BIDEN commuted the sentences of 37 federal death row inmates, including SANDERS, as part of his clemency actions. However, on Monday, a grand jury in Catahoula Parish indicted SANDERS on state charges, reigniting the debate over his punishment.
BRAD BURGET, the Catahoula Parish District Attorney, expressed outrage over BIDEN‘s decision to commute SANDERS‘ sentence. “Whatever your politics are, this is a 12-year-old who watched her mother be brutally killed by Mr. SANDERS. Then, he kidnapped her, traveled halfway across the country, and shot her three times in the head and once in the chest with a .22-caliber rifle before slitting her throat with a homemade knife,” BURGET told Fox News Digital.
The case dates back to 2010 when SANDERS met LEXIS‘ mother, SUELLEN ROBERTS, while working at a warehouse in Las Vegas. The two began dating and embarked on a road trip to the Grand Canyon over Labor Day weekend. During their return, SANDERS drove into an Arizona desert, fatally shot SUELLEN, and kidnapped LEXIS. He held her captive for several days before driving to Catahoula Parish, Louisiana, where he brutally murdered the 12-year-old in a wooded area. Her body was discovered by hunters in October 2010, and SANDERS was arrested the following month at a Mississippi truck stop.
“This child suffered a horrible death,” BURGET stated. “I think the only penalty for SANDERS is the death penalty. The federal prosecutor did a wonderful job securing conviction and justice for LEXIS and her family. Then, JOE BIDEN decided to undo that with the stroke of his pen.”
The district attorney decided to present the case to a Catahoula Parish grand jury, which indicted SANDERS on state charges on Monday. BURGET emphasized that Louisiana law requires a grand jury to decide on capital offenses. “When SANDERS was arrested federally, a warrant from Catahoula Parish was never executed due to the federal prosecution. Therefore, I presented it to the grand jury,” he explained.
BURGET expressed confidence in the case, stating, “I’ll put it in the hands of a jury. When the jury makes a decision, you have to respect that. I respect that the Catahoula Parish jury will make the right decision.”
This development underscores the ongoing legal and moral complexities surrounding capital punishment and executive clemency.
**Sources:**
[Fox News](https://www.foxnews.com)
[U.S. Department of Justice](https://www.justice.gov)