United States President Joe Biden announced this Thursday (12) that he was pardoning 39 people convicted of non-violent crimes and commuting the sentences of almost 1,500 others who were serving long prison sentences.
The pardons and clemency come more than a week after the one for his son Hunter.
Officials said last week that the White House was hearing demands that Biden extend the same grace to thousands of people wronged by the U.S. justice system.
The commutations on Thursday were announced for those who have been placed on home confinement during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Biden said these people would have received shorter sentences if they were charged under current laws, policies and practices.
Sources told Reuters last week that pardons being discussed included those convicted of nonviolent drug crimes and people identified by civil rights groups as wrongfully incarcerated.
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“As President, I have the great privilege of extending clemency to people who have demonstrated remorse and rehabilitation, restoring the opportunity for Americans to participate in everyday life and contribute to their communities, and taking action to remove sentencing disparities for non-violent offenders, especially those convicted of drug crimes,” Biden said.
The White House reported that the clemencies granted by Biden were the largest ever granted in a single day.
