As one of his final acts before leaving office next week, President Joe Biden has granted another round of commutations for nearly 2,500 people incarcerated in federal prison over nonviolent drug convictions, including several who are serving time for offenses related to marijuana.
Biden said on Friday that, with these commutations, he has now granted clemency to more people than any president in history. That includes two rounds of mass pardons he granted to people who’ve committed federal cannabis possession offenses earlier in his term.
“Today’s clemency action provides relief for individuals who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes,” he said in a statement, adding that the previous enactment of bipartisan criminal justice reform legislation such as the Fair Sentencing Act and the First Step Act underscores that it’s “time that we equalize these sentencing disparities.”
“This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities, and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars,” Biden said. “I am proud of my record on clemency and will continue to review additional commutations and pardons.”
With President-elect Donald Trump set to assume office after his inauguration on Monday, the window to achieve that is nearly sealed. And while advocates applaud the president’s clemency actions over the past four years, there’s been lingering frustration that thousands have remained incarcerated in federal prison over marijuana-related convictions, including nonviolent sales cases.
According to the Last Prisoner Project (LPP), several people with cannabis convictions were included in the list of those Biden granted commutations to on Friday:
- Kerry Collier served almost 14 years of a 20-year sentence with 10 years of supervision.
- Daniel Gallegos served almost 14 years of a 20-year sentence with 10 years of supervision.
- Melvin Garland served 14 years of a 22-year sentence with 8 years of supervision.
- Albert Madrid served almost 26 years of a life sentence with 5 years of supervision.
- Claudio Martinez Jr. served over 10 years of a 22-year sentence with 8 years of supervision.
- John Newton served almost 16 years of an over 24-year sentence with 8 years of supervision.
- Jose Sepulveda served over 27 years of a life sentence with 5 years of supervision.
- Robert Jason Thomas over 15 years of a 20-year sentence with 8 years of supervision.
- Leonel Villasenor served almost 22 years of a 30-year sentence with 4 years of supervision.
Here’s how lawmakers and advocates are reacting to Biden’s clemency action:
Weldon Angelos, The Weldon Project & Mission Green
“I commend President Biden for granting clemency to 2,500 people serving lengthy sentences for the crack-powder disparity and unjust enhancements not made retroactive by the First Step Act,” Weldon Angelos, who received a presidential pardon under the first Trump administration for his own cannabis case, told Marijuana Moment on Friday.
“This is an important step and the first real clemency effort where people still in prison are getting a chance at freedom, and it deserves recognition. That said, I remain amazed at the lack of focus on releasing those incarcerated for marijuana offenses,” he added. “Marijuana is less harmful than alcohol, yet those serving federal sentences for it continue to be overlooked.”
“There is still time to act. The president has an opportunity to address this injustice, and I urge him to make marijuana clemency a priority before it’s too late,” Angelos said.
Last Prisoner Project (LPP)
Sarah Gersten, executive director and general counsel at LPP, said in a press release that this “historic decision offers hope—not just for those freed today, but for all the individuals still incarcerated for cannabis and their families that have been impacted by the War on Drugs.”
“President Biden’s actions remind us that meaningful change is possible when people work together and listen to what is needed to provide true justice through second chances,” she said.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA)
Pressley is among numerous congressional lawmakers who have implored the president to exercise his executive authority and provide clemency for people who’ve been disproportionately impacted by punitive drug war policies. And that call for action was amplified after the November election.
Responding to the latest commutations, Pressley said this represents “another historic, transformative, and compassionate step toward healing and reuniting families by commuting the sentences of thousands of individuals serving unjustified lengthy sentences—a direct result of the failed policies of the War on Drugs.”
“With this action, President Biden has now issued more pardons and commutations than any President in American history and is demonstrating the power of clemency to address the injustices of our criminal legal system,” the congresswoman said. “I thank President Biden for acting boldly and continuing to use clemency to change and save lives. This is what we’ve been calling for and this is the type of leadership the moment demands. This will be a defining part of President Biden’s legacy.”
Drug Policy Alliance (DPA)
Kassandra Frederique, executive director of DPA, said Biden’s latest commutations “demonstrated to Americans that justice delayed doesn’t have to mean injustice forever.”
“These 2,500 individuals faced years, in many cases decades, of imprisonment because of the deeply flawed, racist, and draconian drug laws that politicians continue to perpetuate to this day,” she said. “We thank President Biden and celebrate this historic day.”
However, she added that the organization remains gravely concerned that “elected officials across the country and the incoming Trump administration are at risk of repeating the same mistakes of the 1980s and ‘90s by prioritizing criminalization and punishment over support.”
“Make no mistake, the same drug war playbook that ruined lives, broke communities apart, and imprisoned large swaths of the American public for crack cocaine will have the same effect today, resulting in a more unpredictable, dangerous drug supply that will only put more lives at risk and more people behind bars,” Frederique said.
“As we thank President Biden for his bold actions today, we will also continue our fight to change laws to support the reintegration of these Americans who will now face the arduous task to reenter a society which has needlessly erected numerous barriers—from housing and healthcare to employment—to their success. And we also call on Congress and the Trump administration to prioritize the real health solutions to drugs and the overdose crisis we urgently need to save lives.”
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL)
“Even as critical sentencing reforms have passed, we have watched as individuals languish in prison for charges which would now result in much lower sentences,” NACDL Executive Director Lisa Wayne said. “This announcement rectifies this injustice.”
“We are grateful to President Biden for setting a record for the most presidential pardons and commutations in U.S. history and recognizing the continued impact of America’s cruel war on drugs and the racist sentencing disparities that plague our carceral system. In addition to providing warranted sentencing relief, this announcement is an important step in the fight for drug law reform.”
Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA)
Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN)
Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC)
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO)
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS)
Friday’s commutation action comes about a week after the president declined to respond to a question about whether he plans to fulfill his campaign promise to release people still imprisoned for marijuana before his term ends.
The White House had also previously said there are still clemency options being considered.
A main reason the pardon issue became a central talking point last month is because the president broke a pledge not to pardon his son, Hunter Biden, who was federally charged with gun- and tax-related offenses. After he announced that clemency, advocates were quick to reiterate the need for the president to free people still in federal prison over marijuana.
A coalition of 14 Democratic congressional lawmakers has separately urged Biden to significantly expand his marijuana pardons and issue updated guidance to formally deprioritize federal cannabis prosecutions before his administration comes to an end.
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ron Wyden (D-OR) and former Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) are also promoting a drug policy reform group’s call for the president or future administrations to issue an executive order to ensure equity in federal marijuana laws and more broadly shift the country away from the drug war.
Meanwhile, a coalition of 67 Democratic members of Congress has separately called on Biden to expand on his executive clemency work before the end of his term, citing his past marijuana pardons as an example of his ability to provide “life-changing” relief to Americans.
Biden also recently discussed his administration’s cannabis actions and reiterated his belief that criminalization over minor marijuana offenses is an outdated policy during a speech at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s (CBCF) 2024 Phoenix Awards Dinner.
In the background, the Biden administration’s push to reschedule marijuana has been delayed for at least three months, with a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) judge granting a motion to temporarily suspend hearing proceedings that were set to start next week amid allegations of misconduct on the agency’s end.
Meanwhile, a recent poll found that a majority of Americans are in favor of clemency for everyone who’s been federally criminalized over cannabis, as well as broader drug possession.
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The post Biden Commutes Sentences Of Nearly 2,500 People In Prison For Drug Offenses, Including Some Who Are Locked Up On Marijuana Charges appeared first on Marijuana Moment.
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