cannabisnews.com: Obama Commutes Sentences of 200 Prisoners
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Obama Commutes Sentences of 200 Prisoners
Posted by CN Staff on August 03, 2016 at 12:41:28 PT
By Byron Tau
Source: Wall Street Journal
Washington, D.C. -- President Barack Obama commuted the sentences of more than 200 federal inmates on Wednesday in his largest grant of clemency to date.The White House announced that Mr. Obama had shortened the sentences of 214 prisoners, including 67 serving a life sentence, with many eligible for release this year. That brings Mr. Obama to a total of more than 500 commutations, more than the previous nine presidents combined, according to the White House.
“Today’s 214 grants of commutation also represent the most grants in a single day since at least 1900. That being said, our work is far from finished. I expect the president will continue to grant clemency in a historic and inspiring fashion,” White House counsel Neil Eggleston wrote in a blog post.Nearly all of offenders granted a commutation by Mr. Obama were serving time for nonviolent drug-related offenses, though a number also had been convicted of firearms violations in addition to drug charges.“All of the individuals receiving commutation today, incarcerated under outdated and unduly harsh sentencing laws, embody the president’s belief that ’America is a nation of second chances,’” Mr. Eggleston wrote.Mr. Obama has embarked on a major clemency initiative in his second term, as part of an effort to reduce the nation’s prison population and reform its sentencing laws.In addition to grants of commutation, Mr. Obama has proposed an overhaul of the criminal justice system that would reduce sentences and recidivism. A bill working its way through Congress has found broad support in both the Republican and Democratic parties, though it has yet to pass either the full House or the Senate.Of the more than two million inmates in U.S. prisons and jails, only about 194,000 are held in federal prisons—the rest are in the state and local criminal justice system. Inmates convicted under state law are beyond the reach of Mr. Obama’s clemency powers.Despite Mr. Obama’s expansive use of his clemency powers, he has been far more reluctant to use his pardon powers.The Constitution grants the president the power either to shorten sentences through a commutation or grant a pardon that entirely expunges the initial offense from the convict’s record.Pardoned individuals are usually able to vote, obtain gun licenses and apply for jobs without the burden of a criminal record. Commuted offenders are not.To date, Mr. Obama has pardoned just 70 individuals—well below the number of pardons granted by other recent presidents. George W. Bush granted 189 pardons during his eight years in office, while President Bill Clinton granted nearly 400. Harry Truman granted nearly 2,000 pardons, and Dwight D. Eisenhower granted more than 1,100.Source: Wall Street Journal (US)Author: Byron TauPublished: August 3, 2016Copyright: 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.Contact: wsj.ltrs wsj.comWebsite: http://www.wsj.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/kNKjJnOKCannabisNews Justice Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/justice.shtml 
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Comment #6 posted by HempWorld on August 05, 2016 at 16:35:03 PT
OT Hemp Car!
New Article and Video!Check it!http://howtoexitthematrix.com/2015/04/01/henry-fords-suppressed-hemp-car-what-we-all-should-be-driving/
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Comment #5 posted by Sam Adams on August 05, 2016 at 09:39:02 PT
obama
will be interesting to see what happens with him in the future. Just the usual speaking tours or something more substantial?
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on August 04, 2016 at 19:45:50 PT
Hope
We sure do! I think a portion of the world has gone stark raving mad! LOL!
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Comment #3 posted by Hope on August 04, 2016 at 18:12:24 PT
I like him, too, FoM. 
We live in interesting times. Do we not?
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by Sam Adams on August 04, 2016 at 12:32:26 PT
time to get rolling
He's got until next January? Hopefully he'll do a few hundred more every month. Or a few thousand.  I doubt Trump is going to pardon anyone.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by FoM on August 03, 2016 at 12:42:08 PT
President Obama
I am really going to miss him.
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