The White House has begun evaluating clemency requests and has indicated to criminal justice activists that Joe Biden could begin issuing pardons and commutations about halfway through his presidency, according to The New York Times.
In discussions with outside groups, administration officials have signaled that Biden seeks to honor his campaign promise to prioritize racial equity and justice and is establishing a deliberate process that would identify individuals who incontrovertibly deserve mercy rather than take the same approach of former President Donald Trump who haphazardly issued pardons to a network of friends and wealthy allies.
The revamped approach to pardons is part of Biden’s broader long-term effort to rewrite his criminal justice policies which have evolved over more than 40 years in public service, the Times reported. During 35 years in the Senate, Biden helped to craft legislation that enacted heavy-handed sentences for drug crimes and laid the groundwork for mass incarceration that disproportionately impacted Black communities throughout America.
During his campaign, Biden apologized for the 1994 Crime Bill, which was one of the more aggressive crime measures he championed as a senator. Now as president, Biden has surrounded himself with voices that advocate for overhauling the system, according to the Times.
The White House, meanwhile, has been mostly quiet in public about Biden’s pardon plans, but behind the scenes Biden’s team is working with the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney to process clemency requests with a goal of having the president sign some before the 2022 midterm elections, the Times reported.
“We asked them not to wait to the end of a term to execute pardon and commutation power for photo ops, and they definitely assured us that is not this administration’s plan,” said DeAnna Hoskins, the president of the criminal justice group JustLeadershipUSA, who participated in a Zoom session for former prisoners with White House officials last month, according to the Times.
Sources close to the discussions said Biden intends to use clemency — which is among the most unchecked and profound power at a president’s disposal — to address systemic issues in the criminal justice system.
Before becoming president, Biden’s camp hinted that he would use clemency “broadly” to “secure the release of individuals facing unduly long sentences for certain nonviolent and drug crimes.”
Among those supporting the administration’s efforts is Susan E. Rice, who leads Biden’s Domestic Policy Council. She is focused on instilling racial equity in all of the administration’s initiatives and has recruited a team with deep roots in civil rights and justice, the Times reported.
As a member of the House and the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Cedric Richmond championed efforts to decrease sentences and incarceration rates. Rice and Richmond, who leads the White House’s Office of Public Engagement, have participated in sessions with criminal justice activists, as has Chiraag Bains, a special assistant to Biden for criminal justice and gun policy who worked in the Justice Department’s civil rights division under the Obama administration.
The White House’s evaluation of clemency requests is being conducted by the counsel’s office, led by Danielle Conley, the deputy counsel. Others in the counsel’s office who are involved in the effort include Lauren Moore and Tona Boyd — both of whom were hired from Democratic Senate offices, where they worked on criminal justice and civil rights issues — as well as Dana Remus, the White House counsel.
But the White House has indicated that it will rely on the rigorous application vetting process overseen by the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney.
Trump’s clemency grants had almost completely bypassed the Justice Department’s process, instead empowering friends, associates and lobbyists to use their connections to the president, his family and his team to push favored requests to the front of the line, sometimes collecting large fees for their services from pardon-seekers.
Information provided by The New York Times was used to compile this report.
