- Joe Biden has pardoned significantly more people than previous presidents.
- Barack Obama gave 212 pardons and 1,715 commutations, while Donald Trump gave 143 pardons and 94 commutations.
- Biden granted clemency to inmates affected by ‘outdated’ crack vs. powder cocaine sentencing laws.
President Joe Biden’s term in office has been filled with breaking several records.
He was the first president to hold office over the age of 78, the first to win over 80 million votes in an election, the first to pardon a child, and now he has granted clemency to more individuals than any other president in American history.
Friday morning, Biden pardoned nearly 2,500 convicts, serving sentences for “non-violent drug offenses,” per the White House.
Biden deemed these sentences as unfair and disproportionately long “compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy and practice.”
He added, “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history.”
Clemency granted to inmates affected by ‘outdated’ crack vs. powder cocaine sentencing laws
Biden referenced the 2010 Fair Sentencing Act and the 2018 First Step Act, calling for a need to “equalize these sentencing disparities.”
The Fair Sentencing Act, signed into law by former President Barack Obama, increased the amount of crack cocaine required to trigger mandatory minimum sentences and eliminated the five-year minimum sentence for simple possession of crack cocaine.
Before the Fair Sentencing Act, federal law treated the possession or sale of crack cocaine much more harshly than powder cocaine. The law treated 1 gram of crack cocaine as equivalent to 100 grams of powder cocaine. After the Fair Sentencing Act, the ratio changed to 18:1.
The First Step Act was signed into law in 2018 by President-elect Donald Trump, and it allowed convicted drug users to petition for reduced sentences based on the changes in the Fair Sentencing Act.
It also incentivized inmates to participate in job training programs, enhanced family visitation and reduced sentence times for repeat offenders.
Biden says pardons are a ‘step toward righting historic wrongs’
In the White House press release, Biden said these pardons provide “deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars.”
He added, “I am proud of my record on clemency and will continue to review additional commutations and pardons.”
How do Biden’s pardons compare to previous presidents?
According to Pew Research Center, Trump ranks as the third lowest president in granting clemency, with only George H.W. Bush and his son George W. Bush have granted less clemency since 1900.
Trump gave 143 pardons and 94 commutations during his first term.
Obama gave 212 pardons and 1,715 commutations during his two terms.
Until Biden’s most recent mass pardoning, Obama held “the highest total of any president going back to Harry Truman,” Pew reported.