Washington, DC – Outgoing President Joe Biden is making good on some early campaign promises from 2019-20. He already cleared death row and issued one round of commutations to people already released from prison through the CARE program. Now he issued a statement that he is “commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offenses who are serving disproportionately long sentences compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy, and practice.”
Biden said in a statement, “With this action, I have now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any president in U.S. history.”
The action, the President said, “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who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes.”
Congress had previously recognized, through the Fair Sentencing Act and the First Step Act, the need to equalize these sentencing disparities going forward—but they did not apply retroactively.
“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,” Biden said.
He added, “I am proud of my record on clemency and will continue to review additional commutations and pardons.”
This is an ongoing story.
“commuting the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offenses who are serving disproportionately long sentences compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy, and practice.”
Is there any way of finding out how many of these non-violent drug offenders were locked up by Kamala Harris?
They are all federal so probably none.