US no longer seeking death for man convicted in Sjodin case

By JIM SALTER and MICHAEL TARM
Associated Press

The U.S. attorney in North Dakota says he will no longer seek the death penalty for Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., convicted in the kidnapping and killing of a college student nearly two decades ago in a case that led to changes in sex offender registration laws. U.S. Attorney Mac Schneider said in a news release that he’s following a directive from Attorney General Merrick Garland. Schneider filed a notice withdrawing his effort to seek the death penalty for Rodriguez, who was convicted in the 2003 abduction and killing of college student Dru Sjodin. Rodriguez has been on death row at a federal prison for nearly two decades.