President Biden announced a historic act of clemency

Yesterday, President Biden issued presidential pardons to 39 Americans convicted of non-violent crimes and also commuted the sentences of ~1,500 other people, in what the White House described as the most acts of presidential clemency issued in a single day.

• Prior to Thursday’s announcement, Biden had issued 26 pardons and 135 commutations.
• His latest act commutes the sentences of people who were released from prison and placed on home confinement during Covid.

Background: Pardons and commutations are different forms of clemency. A pardon fully removes any civil disabilities associated with a conviction, such as restrictions on voting or holding public office, while a commutation reduces a convict’s sentence totally or partially, but doesn’t remove civil disabilities related to the conviction.

🤔 How does Biden’s clemency stack up? During their respective terms in office, President Trump issued 144 pardons and 94 commutations in four years, President Obama issued 212 pardons and 1,715 commutations across eight years, and George W. Bush issued 189 pardons and 11 commutations also across eight years.