by Admin
Jan 17, 2025
Just days before the end of his term, outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden commuted the sentences of nearly 2,500 individuals convicted of nonviolent drug offenses.
This was announced on Friday in a statement made by President Biden, who said “serving disproportionately long sentences compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy, and practice”.
He further added, “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in US history,”
In his statement, President Biden expatiated that “Based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes”.
“As Congress recognized through the Fair Sentencing Act and the First Step Act, it is time that we equalize these sentence disparities”,
He further explained that “This action is an important step toward righting historical 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 announcement comes as the Democrat has authorized pardons and commuted sentences for many individuals before his successor, Republican Donald Trump, takes office on Monday.
In December 2024, President Biden commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal inmates on death row, changing their sentences to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
He also mentioned that he pardoned 39 individuals convicted of nonviolent crimes and commuted the sentences of nearly 1,500 others serving lengthy prison terms in the same month.
President Biden has faced significant criticism, including from incoming President Donald Trump, over his decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden, who pleaded guilty to tax violations and was convicted on firearms-related charges.