In the USA, the president has the right to pardon convicted perpetrators. Joe Biden is making use of this right again, freeing eleven people, but he is even going one step further.
US President Joe Biden has pardoned several criminals who were sentenced to “disproportionately long prison sentences” for drug crimes. The White House said there were eleven men and women. They were all once sentenced to decades in prison, and in some cases even lifelong. According to the current legal situation, the sentence would have been significantly milder, it was said. With this step, Biden is taking into account the principle of equal treatment before the law.
Under federal law, a U.S. president can pardon convicted criminals, even after serving a sentence. In such cases, a pardon is about removing possible restrictions that apply to ex-offenders and about publicly rehabilitating a person’s reputation. Biden has already made use of this option several times.
Biden also ordered a pardon for all people convicted of marijuana possession at the federal level in the United States. Criminal records for marijuana possession or use create “unnecessary barriers” to employment, housing or educational opportunities, Biden said. Too many lives have been turned upside down by the “misguided approach to the issue”.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
