Eric Holder Says U.S. Will Not Seek Death Penalty for Snowden

Attorney General Eric Holder told Russian authorities the U.S. would not be seeking the death penalty for National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden.

In his letter, Holder says Snowden's arguments for temporary asylum in Russia are without merit.Snowden claimed he was seeking asylum because he will be tortured and face the death penalty if returned to the United States. The death penalty is not even an option for Snowden's charges, and even if additional charges were filed against him, Holder said the U.S. would not seek capital punishment against Snowden.

"We believe that these assurances eliminate these asserted grounds for Mr. Snowden's claim that he should be treated as a refugee or granted asylum," Holder wrote.

Holder then said it was untrue that Snowden couldn't travel due to a revoked passport. According to Holder,Snowden is still a U.S. citizen and is eligible for a limited-validity passport that would authorize a direct return to the United States.

"The United States is willing to immediately issue such a passport to Mr. Snowden," Holder wrote.

Snowden has been in a transit zone of the Moscow airport for over a month, and has been seeking temporary political asylum in Russia. He had previously traveled to Hong Kong before ultimately ending up in the Moscow airport.