By the end of his second and final term on January 20, 2017, United States President Barack Obama had exercised his constitutional power to grant the executive clemency—that is, "pardon, commutation of sentence, remission of fine or restitution, and reprieve"[1] —to 1,927 individuals convicted of federal crimes. Of the acts of clemency, 1,715 were commutations (including 504 life sentences) and 212 were pardons.[2] [3] Most individuals granted executive clemency by Obama had been convicted on drug charges,[4] and had received lengthy and sometimes mandatory sentences at the height of the war on drugs.[5]
Obama holds the record for the largest single-day use of the clemency power, granting 330 commutations on January 19, 2017, his last full day in office.[6] [7] He also issued more commutations than the past 13 presidents combined.[2] [8]
The pardon powers of the president are outlined in Article Two of the United States Constitution (Section 2, Clause 1), which provides:
A pardon is an executive order granting clemency for a conviction, it may be granted "at any point after the ... commission" of the crime.[9] As per Justice Department regulations, convicted persons may only apply five or more years after their sentence has been completed. However, the president's power to pardon is not restricted by any temporal constraints except that the crime must have been committed. Its practical effect is the restoration of civil rights and statutory disabilities (e.g., firearm rights, occupational licensing) associated with a past criminal conviction.[10] In rarer cases, such as the pardon of Richard Nixon, a pardon can also halt criminal proceedings and prevent an indictment.
A commutation is the mitigation of the sentence of someone currently serving a sentence for a crime pursuant to a conviction, without vacating the conviction itself.[10]
This is a partial list of people pardoned or granted clemency by a United States president, ordered by date of pardon or commutation. For an updated list, see U.S. Department of Justice.[11]
| Name | Court or home city | Sentencing date | Sentence | Offense | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Bernard Banks | 1972 | 2 years' probation | Illegal possession of government property | ||
| Russell James Dixon | 1960 | 2 years' probation | Liquor law violation | ||
| Laurens Dorsey | 1998 | 5 years' probation; $71,000 restitution | Conspiracy to defraud by making false statements to the Food and Drug Administration | ||
| Ronald Lee Foster | 1963 | Probation; $20 fine | Mutilation of coins | ||
| Timothy James Gallagher | 1982 | 3 years' probation | Cocaine possession and conspiracy to distribute | ||
| Roxane Kay Hettinger | 1986 | 30 days in jail; 3 years' probation | Conspiracy to distribute cocaine | ||
| Edgar Leopold Kranz Jr. | 1994 | 24 months' confinement; reduction in pay | Cocaine use, adultery and bouncing checks | ||
| Floretta Leavy | 1994 | 1 year in prison; 3 years' probation | Drug offenses[12] | ||
| Scoey Lathaniel Morris | 1991 | 3 years' probation; $1,200 fine | Counterfeiting offense. |
| Name | Court or home city | Sentencing date | Sentence | Offense | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randy Eugene Dyer | 1975 | 5 years in prison | Conspiracy to import marijuana (hashish), conspiracy to remove baggage from the custody and control of the U.S. Customs Service and convey false information concerning an attempt to damage a civil aircraft | ||
| Danny Alonzo Levitz | 1980 | 2 years of probation, $400 fine | Conspiracy | ||
| Michael Ray Neal | 1991 | 6 months in prison, 3 years of supervised release conditioned on 6 months of home confinement, $2,500 fine | Manufacture, assembly, modification and distribution of equipment for unauthorized decryption of satellite cable programming | ||
| Edwin Alan North | United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana | 1980 | 6 months of unsupervised probation | Transfer of a firearm without payment of transfer tax | |
| Allen Edward Peratt | 1990 | 30 months in prison, 5 years of supervised release | Conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine | ||
| Christine Marie Rossiter | 1992 | 3 years of probation conditioned on performance of 500 hours of community service | Conspiracy to distribute less than 50 kilograms of marijuana | ||
| Patricia Ann Weinzatl | 2001 | 3 years of probation, $5,000 fine | Structuring transactions to evade reporting requirements | ||
| Bobby Gerald Wilson | 1985 | 3½ months in prison, 5 years of probation conditioned on performance of 300 hours of community service, $400 fine | Aiding and abetting the possession and sale of illegal American alligator hides (Lacey Act) |
| Name | Court or home city | Sentencing date | Sentence | Offense | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lesley Claywood Berry Jr. | 1988 | 3 years in prison | Conspiracy to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana | ||
| Bobby Jackson | 1987 | 5 years' probation and $20,000 fine | Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute in excess of 1,000 pounds of marijuana | ||
| Ricky Dale Collett | 2002 | 1 year of probation conditioned on 60 days of home detention | Aiding and abetting in the manufacture of 61 marijuana plants | ||
| Martin Kaprelian | 1984 | 9 years in prison, 5 years of probation | Conspiracy to transport stolen property in interstate commerce, transporting stolen property, concealing stolen property | ||
| Thomas Paul Ledford | 1995 | 1 year of probation conditioned on performance of 100 hours of community service | Conducting and directing an illegal gambling business |
| Name | Court or home city | Sentencing date | Sentence | Offense | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robert Leroy Bebee | 1979 | Two years' probation | Misprision (concealment) of a felony | ||
| James Anthony Bordinaro | 1991 | 12 months' imprisonment, three years' supervised release and a $55,000 fine | Conspiracy to restrain, suppress, and eliminate competition in violation of the Sherman Act; conspiracy to submit false statements | ||
| Kelli Elisabeth Collins | 1994 | Five years' probation | Aiding and abetting a wire fraud | ||
| Edwin Hardy Futch Jr. | 1976 | Five years' probation, $2,399.72 restitution | Theft from an interstate shipment | ||
| Cindy Marie Griffith | 2000 | Two years' probation with 100 hours of community service | Distribution of satellite cable television decryption devices | ||
| Roy Eugene Grimes Sr. | 1961 | 18 months' probation | Falsely altering a United States postal money order, uttering, and publishing a forged and altered money order with intent to defraud | ||
| Jon Christopher Kozeliski | 1994 | One year of probation with six months of home confinement, $10,000 fine | Conspiracy to traffic counterfeit goods | ||
| Jimmy Ray Mattison | 1969 | Three years' probation | Conspiracy to transport and cause the transportation of altered securities in interstate commerce; transporting and causing the transportation of altered securities in interstate commerce | ||
| An Na Peng | 1996 | Two years' probation, $2,000 fine | Conspiracy to defraud the Immigration and Naturalization Service | ||
| Michael John Petri | 1989 | Five years' imprisonment, three years' supervised release | Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance (cocaine) | ||
| Karen Alicia Ragee | 1994 | One year of probation with six months of home confinement, $2,500 fine | Conspiracy to traffic counterfeit goods | ||
| Jamari Salleh | 1989 | Four years' probation, $5,000 fine, $5,900 restitution | False claims upon and against the United States | ||
| Alfor Sharkey | 1994 | Three years' probation with 100 hours of community service, $2,750 restitution | Unauthorized acquisition of food stamps | ||
| Donald Barrie Simon Jr. | 1982 | Two years' imprisonment, three years' probation | Aiding and abetting in the theft of an interstate shipment | ||
| Lynn Marie Stanek | 1986 | Six months in jail, five years' probation conditioned on residence in a community treatment center for a period not to exceed one year | Unlawful use of a communication facility to distribute cocaine | ||
| Larry Wayne Thornton | 1974 | Four years' probation | Possession of an unregistered firearm; possession of a firearm without a serial number | ||
| Donna Kaye Wright | 1983 | 54 days' imprisonment, three years' probation conditioned on performance of six hours of community service per week | Embezzlement and misapplication of bank funds |
| Name | Court or home city | Sentencing date | Sentence | Offense | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Ricardo Alvarez | Marietta, Georgia District of Puerto Rico | 1979 | Time served after nine months' imprisonment, four years' supervised release (April 30, 1997; amended July 31, 1997) | Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin; conspiracy to import heroin | |
| Charlie Lee Davis Jr. | Wetumpka, Alabama Middle District of Alabama | 1995 | 87 months' imprisonment, five years' supervised release (March 21, 1995) | Possession with intent to distribute cocaine base; use of a minor to distribute cocaine base | |
| Ronald Eugene Greenwood | Crane, Missouri District of South Dakota | 1996 | Three years' probation, conditioned on six months' home confinement, 100 hours' community service, $5,000 restitution, $1,000 fine (November 18, 1996) | Conspiracy to violate the Clean Water Act | |
| Little Joe Hatch, aka Joe Hatch Sr. | Lake Placid, Florida Southern District of Florida | 1990 | 60 months' imprisonment, four years' supervised release (May 15, 1990) | Possession with intent to distribute marijuana | |
| Martin Alan Hatcher | Foley, Alabama, Southern District Of Alabama | 1992 | 5 years' probation | Distribution and possession with intent to distribute marijuana[13] | |
| Derek James Laliberte | District of Maine | (October 2, 1992; amended May 21, 1993). | 18 months' imprisonment, 2 years' supervised release | Money laundering[14] | |
| Alfred J. Mack | District of Columbia Superior Court | (April 5, 1982) | 18 to 54 months' imprisonment | Unlawful distribution of heroin | |
| Robert Andrew Schindler | District of Utah | (May 14, 1996). | Three years' probation, four months' home confinement, $10,000 restitution | Conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud | |
| Willie Shaw Jr. | District of South Carolina | (August 7, 1974) | Fifteen years' imprisonment | Armed bank robbery | |
| Kimberly Lynn Stout, formerly known as Kimberly Lynn Cooley | Western District of Virginia | (November 9, 1993) | One day's imprisonment, three years' supervised release (including five months' home confinement) | Bank embezzlement, fraud | |
| Bernard Anthony Sutton Jr. | Eastern District of Virginia | (April 4, 1989) | Three years' probation, $825 restitution, $500 fine | Theft of personal property | |
| Chris Deann Switzer | District of Nebraska | (June 25, 1996) | Four years' probation, conditioned on six months' home confinement, 200 hours' community service | Conspiracy to violate narcotics laws (methamphetamine) | |
| Miles Thomas Wilson | Williamsburg, Ohio Southern District of Ohio | 1981 | Three years' probation (July 15, 1981) | Mail fraud |
During his 4th to last day in office, Obama pardoned James Cartwright, who was awaiting sentencing for giving false statements to federal investigators, and Willie McCovey was pardoned for tax evasion.[15] [16]
| Name | Court | Sentenced | Sentence | Offense | Terms of commutation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eugenia Marie Jennings | 2001 | 262 months (21 years, 10 months) in prison, 8 years of supervised release, $1,750 fine | Distribution of cocaine base | Sentence expired on December 21, 2011, leaving intact and in effect the eight-year term of supervised release with all its conditions and all other components of the sentence. | ||
| Mark Anthony Jones | United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida | 1999 | Life imprisonment; 10 years' supervised release | Distribution of cocaine base | Prison sentence commuted to expire on November 10, 2015, leaving intact and in effect the 10-year term of supervised release with all its conditions and all other components of the sentence. | |
| Rory Larry Lee | United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida | 1990 | Life imprisonment; 10 years' supervised release | Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base (enhanced penalty), distribution of 50 grams or more of cocaine base (two counts) | N/A. |
December 19, 2013
On this day, Obama announced he would be commuting the sentences of 46 drug offenders.[17]
On this day, Obama announced he would be commuting the sentences of 42 offenders.[18]
| Name | Court | Sentencing date | Time served | Offense | Terms of commutation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eric E. Alvarez | 2000 | 360 months (30 years) in prison, 5 years of supervised release | Distribution of cocaine and cocaine base | Sentence expired on October 1, 2016, leaving intact and in effect the five-year term of supervised release with all its conditions and all other components of the sentence. | ||
| Dale Baldwin | Middle District of Florida | 1995 | Life imprisonment; 10 years' supervised release | Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base | Prison sentence commuted to expire on October 1, 2016, leaving intact and in effect the 10-year term of supervised release with all its conditions and all other components of the sentence. |
Obama granted 78 commutations on this day.[4]
On this day, Obama pardoned 64 individuals and commuted the sentence of 209 individuals (109 of whom faced life sentences).[2] These included Chelsea Manning and Oscar López Rivera, enabling them to be released from prison on May 17, 2017.[19] [20]
Obama commuted the prison sentences of 330 federal inmates on Thursday, January 19, 2017, his last full day in office. Obama did so, as one of his final acts in office, in order to reduce what he viewed as overly harsh punishments.[8]