By Bianca Flowers for Reuters
Since Joe Biden's pardon of his son Hunter, civil rights activists and politicians have called for clemency for other people they believe were unfairly convicted or sentenced. Photo: Mandel NGAN / AFP
The White House is listening to demands for President Joe Biden to extend the same grace to thousands of people wronged by the US judicial system as he did to his son Hunter, officials say.
Since Biden's pardon of Hunter on Sunday, a growing chorus of civil rights activists and lawmakers have called for broader clemency for other people they believe were unfairly convicted or sentenced.
Defence attorneys and civil rights groups are ramping up efforts to highlight compelling cases, working in conjunction with state legislators to draft letters to the White House and launching digital campaigns urging action to commute sentences or issue pardons for Americans they believe are wrongly convicted or serving excessive terms for non-violent offences.
The White House is discussing the idea of broader pardons after Hunter, including those convicted of non-violent drug offences and people civil rights groups have identified as unjustly incarcerated, sources say. A senior administration official said there will be a number of pardons for people who have served long sentences and are non-violent.
"There's going to be more to speak to in the upcoming weeks," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Friday, when asked about the demands and the disparity of Black men often face in the US justice system. She noted the president's pardon of marijuana convictions and other commutations in the past. "He's taking this very seriously," she said.
Two years ago, Biden pardoned thousands of people with federal marijuana charges. In June, he started a process to pardon all US veterans convicted by the military for gay sex, which was illegal until 2013.
Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League, told Reuters, "there are multiple conversations taking place" among a coalition of organisations to push Biden for clemency before he leaves office on 20 January.
Call to pardon 'working class Americans'
The top Democrat in the US House of Representatives, Hakeem Jeffries, on Tuesday called on Biden to pardon some "working-class Americans".
The Congressional Black Caucus has worked with the NAACP and is in favour of clemency, particularly because of the disparate incarceration rate of African Americans.
"The Congressional Black Caucus has worked on legislation from the First Step Act to the executive orders dealing with federal offences dealing with marijuana. These are areas that we believe should be high priority for the president to consider," Democratic House member Steven Horsford told a press briefing.
Biden signed an unconditional pardon for his son on Sunday and said he believed Hunter had been selectively prosecuted and targeted unfairly by the president's political opponents. Hunter Biden, 54, was prosecuted for tax offences and charges related to possession of a firearm.
Civil Rights attorney Jarrett Adams said Biden's pardon is another example of "politics robbing the judicial process of justice".
Adams has been advocating for the release of two Black men, Ferrone Claiborne and Terence Richardson. They were sentenced to life in prison in Virginia for the murder of a police officer, despite a jury finding them guilty only of selling crack but not of the killing. The sentence was based on a 1996 US Supreme Court ruling that allows judges to consider actions for which a defendant was found not guilty when determining their sentence for other charges.
The two men initially pleaded guilty to murder, which Adams said was due to advice from their attorneys at the time, as they were facing the death penalty.
Adams, who is their attorney, is working with state legislators in Virginia to pressure the White House for the expedited release of the two men.
"I'm the last beacon of hope that they have - so I'm a part of their pain and struggle," said Adams, who himself was wrongfully convicted at 17 years old and sentenced to 28 years in prison. "We're begging that President Biden provides (these families) some relief they deserve."
Black and Hispanic Americans disproportionately receive harsher sentences for minor and non-violent offences compared to their white counterparts, studies have found. Experts say systemic biases in policing, prosecutorial discretion, and sentencing guidelines contribute to these disparities, perpetuating cycles of inequality.
Some Republicans believe that any announcement by Biden of blanket pardons would undermine the criminal justice system and could further tarnish his reputation after pardoning his son.
"There shouldn't be a Roman emperor who goes, thumbs up, thumbs down," said Republican consultant Jon Fleischman. "These people have been through the criminal justice system and they should abide by the outcome of that system."
Democratic US House member Ayanna Pressley is pushing for Biden to act soon, instead of waiting until the last days of his administration.
"Who knows what barriers or hurdles, procedurally, that he could be met with" if he waits until January, she said.
Historically, presidents often wait until the end of their terms to issue clemency, leaving open the possibility that Biden could take significant action later. Brian Kalt, a law professor who specialises in presidential pardons, said the use of pardon power has diminished in modern history due to political polarisation.
"Anything that he does is going to be opposed by half the country," Kalt said. "But if he does something that offends his own side, that's what really can make a difference to his legacy."
- Reuters
