In commutations announced Thursday, President Joe Biden is commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were released from prison and placed on home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic and is pardoning 39 Americans convicted of nonviolent crimes. “It’s the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history, the Associated Press reports. Biden’s actions topped Barack Obama’s 330 commutations shortly before leaving office in 2017, which has now become the second largest single-day act of clemency. The commutations issued by Biden cover people who have been on home confinement for at least a year, who were released from incarceration to stop the rapid spread of COVID-19 in prisons, where, at one point, 1 in 5 prisoners had COVID-19, according to AP tallies.
Those pardoned include a woman who led emergency response teams during natural disasters; a church deacon who has worked as an addiction counselor and youth counselor; a doctoral student in molecular biosciences; and a decorated military veteran. Biden said he would be taking more steps in the weeks ahead and would continue to review clemency petitions. “America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances,” Biden said in a statement. “As president, I have the great privilege of extending mercy to people who have demonstrated remorse and rehabilitation, restoring opportunity for Americans to participate in daily life and contribute to their communities, and taking steps to remove sentencing disparities for non-violent offenders, especially those convicted of drug offenses.” The day of clemency follows a broad pardon for his son Hunter, who was prosecuted for gun and tax crimes. President Biden is under pressure from advocacy groups to pardon broad swaths of people, including those on federal death row, before the Trump administration takes over in January. He’s also weighing whether to issue preemptive pardons to those who investigated Trump’s effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and are facing possible retribution when he takes office.
Comments