In one of his final acts as president, Joe Biden has commuted the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses. The move was announced just days before he will hand the reins of power over to his successor, Republican Donald Trump.
Biden noted in a statement on Friday that those receiving clemency were serving sentences “many times longer than they would serve today under laws and policies enacted since their sentencing.” “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in US history,” he added, underlining the historic importance of his decision.
The latest announcement comes after Biden moved last December to commute the sentences of 37 of 40 federal inmates on death row to life imprisonment without parole. In that month he also pardoned 39 individuals convicted of nonviolent crimes and commuted nearly another 1,500 sentences.
Biden has also been criticized for pardoning his son, Hunter, who pleaded guilty to tax violations and was convicted on firearms-related charges. In the final months of his term, defense attorneys and civil rights groups ramped up pressure on the administration to highlight cases they said involved wrongful convictions or overly harsh sentences for nonviolent crimes.
Biden said in a statement that sentencing disparity was a priority, especially the “outdated sentences for crack and powder cocaine.” He cited the Fair Sentencing Act and the First Step Act as legislative tools that have been utilized in the quest to bring about equal sentencing. “This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families,” he said.
Presidents often grant pardons at the end of their terms. Trump, who is expected to be sworn in on Monday, has signaled he intends to pardon some of his supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6 in a bid to overturn Biden’s 2020 election victory.
