WASHINGTON: The outgoing US President Joe Biden on Friday commuted the sentences of nearly 2,500 people convicted of non-violent drug offenses.
Biden in a statement said that those benefiting from the action “are serving disproportionately long sentences compared to the sentences they would receive today under current law, policy, and practice,”
He claimed that he has now issued more individual pardons and commutations than any predecessor.
The action offers clemency to individuals who were sentenced based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug offenses, according to a statement from the White House.
In December, President Biden commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 federal inmates on death row, reducing their sentences to life in prison without parole, just before President-elect Donald Trump assumed office on January 20.
In the same month he commuted the sentences of nearly 1,500 people and pardoned 39 others.
“America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances,” Biden said in a statement announcing the action. “As President, I have the great privilege of extending mercy to people who have demonstrated remorse and rehabilitation.”
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Biden has faced criticism for pardoning his son, Hunter, who had pleaded guilty to tax violations and was convicted on firearms-related charges.
Defence attorneys and civil rights organisations have intensified efforts to spotlight strong cases, launching campaigns to assist individuals they believe were wrongfully convicted or are serving disproportionate sentences for nonviolent offenses.
Presidents generally issue a batch of pardons near the end of their term. Trump has pledged to grant clemency to some of his supporters involved in the January 6, 2021 storming of the U.S. Capitol, during the failed attempt to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s 2020 election win.