Former President Joe Biden stirred controversy during his final days in office with a series of unexpected criminal commutations.
According to The Daily Caller, the former president issued commutations for nearly 2,500 individuals with criminal records, including some with violent histories, against recommendations from his own Department of Justice.
The DOJ had only recommended about 10% of those who received commutations, according to internal communications reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. Elizabeth Oyer, the DOJ pardon attorney, expressed disappointment over the process in an email to her colleagues, noting that many of the clemency grants were "very upsetting" to prosecutors.
The selection process for commutations was primarily handled by lawyers from the White House Counsel's Office rather than the traditional DOJ channels. A former Biden administration official familiar with the process explained that the focus was on individuals sentenced during periods of disparity between crack and powder cocaine punishments.
The officials maintained that they excluded individuals with high recidivism risk or those involved in especially egregious conduct. However, the final list included several people previously found guilty of illegally possessing firearms and two individuals whose actions led to a police officer's death.
The DOJ's pardon office was largely sidelined during the process, with Oyer noting that hundreds of their recommended candidates were excluded while others previously rejected by the department made the final list.
Among the most contentious commutations was that of Adrian Peeler, who was serving time for cocaine distribution conspiracy. Prior to his federal sentence, Peeler had been convicted in a separate case involving the 1999 murders of an 8-year-old boy and his mother. His release date has now been moved up from 2033 to 2025.
Another controversial case involved Lairon Graham, who led a fentanyl, cocaine, and heroin distribution conspiracy. Graham had previously admitted to forcing young women into sex work through violent means, including regular brutal beatings of one victim.
Elizabeth Oyer wrote to her colleagues:
While I am a strong believer in the possibility of second chances through clemency, the process by which yesterday's action was carried out was not what we had hoped and advocated for.
In addition to the mass commutations, Biden issued last-minute pardons to several family members, including his brothers Frank and James, James' wife Sara, his sister Valerie Owens, and her husband John Owens. These pardons came just moments before former President Trump's inauguration.
Biden justified his actions in a White House statement:
I believe in the rule of law, and I am optimistic that the strength of our legal institutions will ultimately prevail over politics. But baseless and politically motivated investigations wreak havoc on the lives, safety, and financial security of targeted individuals and their families.
Joe Biden's final acts as president included commuting sentences for approximately 2,500 individuals convicted of various crimes, with many having violent backgrounds despite being characterized as "non-violent" offenders. The commutations were largely orchestrated by the White House Counsel's Office, bypassing traditional Department of Justice protocols and recommendations.
These decisions, along with the pardons issued to his family members, represent significant last-minute exercises of presidential power that have generated considerable controversy among legal professionals and law enforcement officials.
