President Biden announced Friday morning he is commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates as the end of his presidency draws near.
The commutations are for people convicted of non-violent drug offenses “who are serving disproportionately long sentences” compared to what they would receive if sentenced under today’s law.
“Today’s clemency action provides relief for individuals who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes,” Biden said in a statement.
The president said now is the time to “equalize these sentencing disparities” as recognized through the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 and the First Step Act of 2018.
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“This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities, and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars,” he continued.
The decision puts Biden thousands of cases ahead of all other presidents who have issued acts of clemency during their terms.
“With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history,” Biden said.
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While granting clemency is not uncommon for a president, Biden has come under bipartisan fire for who he has decided to pardon or commute sentences for.
At the end of December, he chose to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 men on federal death row – helping them escape execution and sending them to prison for life without parole instead.
He was also criticized for pardoning his son, Hunter, of all crimes he “has committed or may have committed” against U.S. law from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 1, 2024. Hunter was convicted last year of gun and tax crimes in two separate federal cases.
Biden also boasted about completing the “largest single-day grant of clemency” on Dec. 12 when he commuted sentences for 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others, most of whom were already serving time in home confinement because of decisions made during the COVID-19 era.
The president added that he is “proud of [his] record on clemency” and said he will “continue to review additional commutations and pardons” ahead of his final full day in office on Jan. 19.
There are 1,947 people awaiting to be pardoned once they complete their sentence and around 6,625 cases awaiting commutation after Friday’s decision, according to Jan. 13 statistics from the Department of Justice.
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