President Biden Announces Commutation of Nearly 2,500 Inmates
President Biden announced on Friday morning that he is commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates, most of whom were convicted of non-violent drug offenses. The commutations are for individuals who are serving disproportionately long sentences compared to what they would receive if sentenced under today’s law.
The president said that the decision is aimed at “equalizing these sentencing disparities” as recognized through the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 and the First Step Act of 2018. Biden stated that the action is an important step towards 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.
The decision puts Biden thousands of cases ahead of all other presidents who have issued acts of clemency during their terms. The president has now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history.
The commutations come as the end of Biden’s presidency draws near, and the president has come under bipartisan fire for who he has decided to pardon or commute sentences for. In December, he chose to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 men on federal death row, and he was also criticized for pardoning his son, Hunter, of all crimes he “has committed or may have committed” against U.S. law from January 1, 2014, to December 1, 2024.
Biden has also boasted about completing the “largest single-day grant of clemency” on December 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 January 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 January 13 statistics from the Department of Justice.