President Joe Biden said Friday he is commuting the sentences of more than 2,000 people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses, cementing his legacy as the president who has issued the most individual pardons and commutations in U.S. history.
Biden said in a statement that commuting the nearly 2,500 sentences would help “equalize” sentencing disparities.
“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who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes,” he said.
“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 added.
“With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history,” Biden said.
Almost two dozen congressional Democrats last month urged Biden to commute the sentences of people affected by the sentencing disparities, arguing that harsher penalties for crack “caused disproportionate harm to communities of color.”
Two laws dramatically shifted sentencing guidelines for crack cocaine offenses over the past 15 years.
The Fair Sentencing Act, which was signed into law in 2010, lowered the statutory penalties for crack cocaine and tossed out the mandatory minimum sentence for possessing it. The First Step Act, which became law in 2018, made it possible to apply the reduced penalties to sentences for crack offenses that predated the 2010 law.
Biden last month commuted nearly 1,500 sentences and issued pardons for 39 people in another sweeping clemency action. A subsequent move to commute 37 death sentences left only a handful of people on federal death row.
According to the Justice Department’s clemency statistics, President-elect Donald Trump issued 144 pardons and 94 commutations during his first term. President Barack Obama issued 212 pardons and 1,715 commutations over two terms.
Perhaps the most controversial use of Biden’s clemency power came when he pardoned his son Hunter Biden last month. The move was sharply criticized by Republicans and even some Democrats.
In his statement Friday, Biden indicated that he could take more clemency action before he leaves office Monday.
“I am proud of my record on clemency and will continue to review additional commutations and pardons,” he said.
