President Joe Biden has made history, granting 39 pardons and he commuted about 1,500 sentences. This is the biggest single-day act of clemency in U.S. history.
BREAKING: President Joe Biden commutes roughly 1,500 sentences and grants 39 pardons in biggest single-day act of clemency in modern US history. https://t.co/CdgD7A87NR
— The Associated Press (@AP) December 12, 2024
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 commutations announced Thursday are for people who have served out home confinement sentences for at least one year after they were released. Prisons were uniquely bad for spreading the virus and some inmates were released in part to stop the spread. At one point, 1 in 5 prisoners had COVID-19, according to a tally kept by The Associated Press.
Biden said he would be taking more steps in the weeks ahead and would continue to review clemency petitions. The second largest single-day act of clemency was by Barack Obama, with 330, shortly before leaving office in 2017.
Granting clemency does not remove the conviction, it reduces or lessens a criminal sentence. As we all know from the Hunter Biden pardon, a pardon removes the legal consequences.
Biden pardoned 39 individuals for nonviolent offenses.
But here's a question we should be asking: if these commuted sentences and pardons are given in the name of justice and righting wrongful or excessive convictions, why do presidents always wait until they're leaving office to grant them?
X users, still sour on the Hunter pardon, were not so keen on the news:
The man that can’t work after 4pm, knows exactly what these 1539 people did?
— Bleu Cheque (@VERBAL_CHANCLA) December 12, 2024
He has no idea what day it is, so not a chance.
Pure corruption. This is why they needed Trump to lose so bad…
— Big Tom Callahan🇺🇸 (@CallahanAutoCo) December 12, 2024
Not necessarily. That'll be if he preemptively pardons Fauci, Cheney, and the crew.
Other X users were okay with this:
reading through the pardons, some make sense, the pardons addressed non-violent crimes, and some for obsoleted laws (created by legislative branch)
— Greg Gutman (@greg_inputdrive) December 12, 2024
society needs to do better, stop enacting laws which do more harm than good.
We definitely need fewer laws.
We also need a government that fairly enforces the laws on the books.
The President's pardon power should be limited to the first year of his first term.
— Bruce Bradley (@BruceBrad6345) December 12, 2024
This writer doesn't agree with this, but as she said above: presidents rarely issue pardons until they're loading up the U-Haul on Inauguration Day.
They should have the spine to issue them sooner if it's truly an injustice.
Thankfully this isn’t the one where he pardons all of the traitors
— Rocky Trumpboa (@RockyTrumpboa) December 12, 2024
If that happens -- and this writer is calling it now -- it'll be Christmas or New Year's Eve when that news drops.
You do not hate this man with half the veracity by which he hates you. https://t.co/RBiF3Abn2G
— StanleyFosha (@stanleyfosha) December 12, 2024
Joe Biden was never a good man.
Democrats are experts at a few things.
— john jackson (@pvtjokerus) December 12, 2024
One is letting people out of jail. https://t.co/dBrlTGTGrU
Remember, the Democrats called on Biden to commute the sentences of all death row inmates.
Laws are for suckers. https://t.co/oW9izICjm0
— Derek Hunter (@derekahunter) December 12, 2024
That's the message the Democrats send, really.
Turning the country into the Purge on your way out office and when you have like a year left on your life. Perfectly encapsulates Biden https://t.co/lZJoX7reAB
— rren 5'11.5 100 IQ (@ren9091) December 12, 2024
Harsh, but accurate.