President Joe Biden announced Thursday that he was granting clemency to nearly 1,500 people, a record number for a single day. This act will clear the sentences of a number of people who had previously been moved from prison to house arrest during the COVID-19 pandemic. The president also pardoned 39 individuals who were convicted of nonviolent criminal offenses. The moves comes as Biden is fielding calls to use his clemency powers more broadly before he leaves office.
Giving ‘second chances’ to nearly 1,500 people
Biden announced in a statement that he was “pardoning 39 people who have shown successful rehabilitation and have shown commitment to making their communities stronger and safer.” The president also announced that he is “commuting the sentences of nearly 1,500 people who are serving long prison sentences – many of whom would receive lower sentences if charged under today’s laws, policies, and practices.” The president declared in his statement that “America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances.”
Today, I’m pardoning 39 people with non-violent crimes who have demonstrated remorse and rehabilitation, and I’m commuting the sentences of nearly 1,500 others – many of whom would have received lower sentences today.
America was built on second chances. That’s what these… pic.twitter.com/OigPcN8qkJ— President Biden (@POTUS) December 12, 2024
The nearly 1,500 people receiving commutations are for individuals who had previously been moved from prison to house arrest for one year or more during the COVID-19 pandemic. The several dozen pardons are all for nonviolent offenses.
Record-breaking clemency under Biden
In a fact sheet released Thursday, the White House noted that Thursday’s pardons and commutations “represent the largest single-day grant of clemency in modern history.” President Barack Obama previously set a single-day record by issuing 330 commutations during his last full day in office. These numbers all refer to individual commutations and pardons. During Biden’s presidency, he has additionally granted “categorical pardons,” which cover all individuals who fit into a stated set of circumstances, such as the specific crime for which they were convicted. Biden has in the past granted categorical pardons for “individuals convicted of simple use and possession of marijuana, and to former LGBTQI+ service members convicted of private conduct because of their sexual orientation.” The White House fact sheet indicated that “there is more to come” as the president continues to evaluate clemency petitions.
Demands for clemency in Biden’s final weeks
This latest round of clemency comes weeks after Biden controversially issued a “full and unconditional pardon” to his son Hunter, who had been scheduled for sentencing on gun possession and tax evasion charges. In the wake of pardoning Hunter, something that Biden had previously promised not to do, various politicians and activists have urged the president to extend similar grace to other individuals who were potentially targeted for political reasons, who were sentenced under unfair or inequitable laws, or who simply needed another chance. There have even been reported discussions about whether Biden should issue “preemptive pardons” to various political opponents of president-elect Donald Trump who might be targeted with investigations or prosecutions once Trump takes office.
With just over a month left in the Biden presidency, the pressure will remain on the outgoing president to use his clemency powers in a number of different cases while he still can. Thursday’s announcements and Biden’s past track record suggest that at least some, and perhaps many, of these requests might be granted before he leaves office.
Full list of Biden’s pardons
Here’s a list of the people who Biden has pardoned, as reported by USA Today:
- Nina Simona Allen, 49, of Harvest, Alabama
- Kelsie Lynn Becklin, 38, of Falcon Heights, Minnesota
- Duran Arthur Brown, 44, of Cleveland, Ohio
- Norman O’Neal Brown, 56, of Washington, DC
- Arthur Lawrence Byrd, 58, of Clinton, Maryland
- Sarah Jean Carlson, 49, of Coon Rapids, Minnesota
- Brandon Sergio Castroflay, 49, of Alexandria, Virginia
- Rosetta Jean Davis, 60, of Colville, Washington
- Stevoni Wells Doyle, 47, of Santaquin, Utah
- Gregory S. Ekman, 58, of Fountain Valley, California
- Shannan Rae Faulkner, 56, of Muldrow, Oklahoma
- Trynitha Fulton, 46, of New Orleans, Louisiana
- Paul John Garcia, 72, of Las Vegas, New Mexico
- Kim Douglas Haman, 75, of Lima, Ohio
- Sherranda Janell Harris, 43, of Norwalk, Connecticut
- Terence Anthony Jackson, 36, of Seattle, Washington
- Edwin Allen Jones, 60, of Paducah, Kentucky
- Jamal Lee King, 53, of North Ridgeville, Ohio
- Jerry Donald Manning, 70, of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin
- Honi Lori Moore, 46, of Rock Springs, Wyoming
- Emily Good Nelson, 39, of Indianapolis, Indiana
- Denita Nicole Parker, 43, of Gaffney, South Carolina
- Michael Gary Pelletier, 67, of Augusta, Maine
- Russell Thomas Portner, 74, of Toutle, Washington
- Nathaniel David Reed III, 46, of San Antonio, Texas
- Gary Michael Robinson, 70, of Redmond, Oregon
- Jose Antonio Rodriguez, 55, of Coral Springs, Florida
- Patrice Chante Sellers, 49, of Bear, Delaware
- Audrey Diane Simon, 63, of Prescott, Wisconsin
- James Russell Stidd, 79, of Groveport, Ohio
- Diana Bazan Villanueva, 51, of La Grange, Illinois
- Lashawn Marrvinia Walker, 51, of Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Mireya Aimee Walmsley, 57, of La Porte, Texas
- Kimberly Jo Warner, 54, of Portville, New York
- Johnnie Earl Williams, 58, of Denver, Colorado
- Shawnte Dorothea Williams, 45, of Columbia, South Carolina
- Lashundra Tenneal Wilson, 49, of Arlington, Texas
- Lora Nicole Wood, 39, of Maxwell, Nevada
- James Edgar Yarbrough, 79, of Arlington, Tennessee
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