President Biden pardoned 39 individuals and commuted the sentences of nearly 1,500 others on Thursday, a sweeping move that comes after pressure from criminal justice advocates over the surprise pardon of his son Hunter Biden.
The White House billed it as setting a new single-day milestone for the number of people impacted. They include those who have been serving house arrest since the COVID-19 pandemic and nonviolent offenders.
President Biden also pledged to “take more steps in the weeks ahead” as his administration continues to review clemency petitions with just over a month left in his White House tenure.
Here are five things to consider about the move:
Biden’s move sets a new single-day milestone
The wave of clemencies affecting more than 1,500 Americans marks the most ever issued in a single day, the White House emphasized, and they come after Biden faced recent criticism for not matching the leniency figures of his predecessors.
Trump pardoned 144 Americans in his first term and commuted 94 sentences, according to statistics from the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney. Former President Obama — under whose administration Biden was vice president — granted 212 pardons and a staggering 1,715 commutations across his two terms in office.
Biden’s acts of forgiveness this week bring him up to 65 pardons and more than 1,600 commutations total, surpassing Trump’s commutation numbers and nearing Obama’s, with several weeks still to go in his single term.
The president also hinted in his statement that more clemency or criminal justice actions could be forthcoming in his final weeks as president.
39 pardons
Biden’s pardons are all for nonviolent offenders, many for drug-related charges.
Some, like 79-year-old James Russell Stidd of Groveport, Ohio, had pleaded guilty to a nonviolent offense when he was just 20 years old.
Many of those pardoned are regarded as “upstanding” community members within their neighborhoods. James Edgar Yarbrough, 79, had received a Purple Heart for his service in the Air Force, from which he was honorably discharged.
Others, like Shannon Rae Faulkner, 56, continued their education after completing their sentences. Faulkner now works as a counselor and recovery coach with female trauma survivors and individuals with disabilities.
While a pardon does not erase the crime from an individual’s record, it restores civil liberties and helps mitigate the stigma associated with a federal conviction. Before Thursday, Biden had issued 26 pardons, per DOJ statistics, including the pardon of his son earlier this month.
1,499 clemencies
With Biden’s new commutations, nearly 1,500 Americans will have their sentences reduced, though the exact reductions are not yet clear.
His commutations focused on individuals who have been serving their sentences at home for at least a year under the pandemic-era Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, a 2020 law that allowed extended home confinement for specific prisoners, the White House explained.
The affected individuals have since “successfully reintegrated into their families and communities and have shown that they deserve a second chance,” Biden stated. The White House also noted their commitment to rehabilitation through securing employment and pursuing education.
Biden emphasized that many of the individuals impacted by the new commutations would have received lower sentences “if charged under today’s laws, policies, and practices.”
Before Thursday’s announcement, Biden had issued 135 commutations, according to DOJ data.
While advocates largely praised the latest surge of clemencies, they also stressed the need for further action.
Lauren-Brooke Eisen, senior director of the Brennan Center’s Justice program, described the Thursday move as “a vital recognition of the excessively punitive nature of our criminal justice system” but reiterated calls for Biden to commute the sentences of the more than 40 people on death row.
Clemencies follow backlash over Hunter’s pardon
The president’s latest clemencies and pardons come amid mounting pressure from criminal justice advocates. However, those voices intensified following Biden’s controversial decision to pardon his son, despite previously vowing he would not do so.
The decision drew sharp criticism from both political parties—Republicans called it an abuse of power, while Democrats feared breaking his earlier pledge gave Trump a political advantage.
The pardon also spurred renewed calls for Biden to extend clemency to other groups, including nonviolent offenders and death row inmates. Advocates pointed to racial disparities in the justice system, emphasizing Biden’s responsibility to use his clemency powers to address these inequities.
Mosby left off pardon list
Despite Biden’s sweeping actions, some high-profile individuals were notably absent from the pardon list, including former Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who was convicted of mortgage fraud and perjury earlier this year.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus, civil rights attorney Ben Crump, and activist Angela Rye have called on Biden to pardon Mosby, arguing she was a political target of Trump’s Justice Department.
In a letter to Biden, Crump and Rye urged consideration of Mosby’s case, describing her situation as emblematic of aggressive prosecutions against Black public officials.
Although Mosby’s name was not included in this round of pardons, Crump praised Biden’s actions, describing them as a “historic step toward second chances and reducing sentencing disparities.” He added, “Marilyn Mosby should be next!”