In his last full day as president, Barack Obama commuted the sentences of 330 inmates, further cementing his legacy as having granted more commutations than any other president in US history.
On Thursday Obama cut short the prison terms of 330 people, the majority of whom were convicted of federal drug crimes. During the president’s second term, he exercised his presidential power to grant clemency liberally, particularly for those convicted of nonviolent drug crimes. In addition to raising Obama’s total tally of sentences shortened, Thursday’s flood of commutations is the most Obama or any US president has issued in a single day. Obama has commuted more people’s sentences than the last 13 presidents combined, according to the White House. In total, Obama commuted the sentences of 1,715 people, include more than 560 who were serving life sentences.
“He wanted to do it. He wanted the opportunity to look at as many as he could to provide relief,” Neil Eggleston, Obama’s White House counsel, told the Associated Press. “He saw the injustice of the sentences that were imposed in many situations, and he has a strong view that people deserve as second chance.”
Obama’s flood of last-minute commutations marks the second day this week that he has reduced sentences for federal inmates. On Tuesday, he commuted the sentence of soldier Chelsea Manning, who had been sentenced to 35 years in a military prison for leaking US diplomatic secrets. Manning will walk free on 17 May. Manning was one of 273 people to have their sentence commuted by Obama earlier this week. Two of Tuesday’s commutations including a reprieve for two inmates who had been sentenced to death. They will serve life sentences instead.
One notable omission from Obama’s final act of clemency is Leonard Peltier, the Native American activist who was sentenced to life in prison after he was accused of fatally shooting two FBI agents in 1975. Earlier this month, one of the lead prosecutors in Peltier’s case wrote an open letter to Obama, urging him to release Peltier. James Reynolds wrote that Peltier’s release would be “in the best interest of justice in considering the totality of all matters involved”.
“There seems to be no point in taxpayers paying his room and board,” Reynolds told the Guardian at the time. “It’s time to call it quits.”
Peltier’s attorneys said he was convicted after a deeply biased trial that included false statements from federal agents and coerced witness testimony.
Obama has also pardoned 212 people during his time in office, the White House said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report