There are many things that President Barack Obama has done during his term in office that have directly impacted and benefited the lives of individual Americans. One of these accomplishments is doing his part to correct past injustices within the judicial system of the United States with presidential pardons and clemencies. On Monday, President Obama pardoned 78 people and shortened the sentences of 153 others convicted of federal crimes. This was the most individual clemencies ever granted in a single day by any president. Of the people granted clemency on Monday, 54 were serving life sentences.
According to a statement by White House counsel Neil Eggleston, “The 231 individuals granted clemency today have all demonstrated that they are ready to make use — or have already made use — of a second chance.” According to the White House, in 2016 President Obama granted clemency to 1,000 “deserving individuals.” In addition, “The President continues to review clemency applications on an individualized basis to determine whether a particular applicant has demonstrated a readiness to make use of his or her second chance, and I expect that the President will issue more grants of both commutations and pardons before he leaves office.”
According to the White House, President Obama has issued more commutations than the previous 11 presidents combined. President Obama has made it clear that there has been over-sentencing in federal crimes due to the mandatory-minimum sentencing guidelines put forth during the Clinton administration. Among the most glaring of these stipulations was the difference in sentencing between crack and powder cocaine cases. Because of the crack epidemic of the ’80s, those who were dealing crack received harsher sentences than those who were dealing powder cocaine. He directed the Justice Department to prioritize petitions for commutations from nonviolent offenders who were serving longer sentences than they would receive today if they were convicted of the same crimes.
