In a continuation of President Barack Obama’s effort to lessen penalties for nonviolent offenses, on July 13, he officially commuted the sentences of 46 people serving time for federal drug charges.
The New York Times reports that this brings Obama’s number of commutations to 89—more than the last four presidents altogether, and more than any other president in almost half a century:
The commutations are part of a second-term push by Mr. Obama to use clemency to correct what he sees as the excesses of the past, when politicians eager to be tough on crime threw away the key even for minor criminals. As a result, African-American and Hispanic men were disproportionately affected.
Mr. Obama had already commuted the sentences of 43 prisoners, as part of an initiative begun last year by James M. Cole, the deputy attorney general at the time, who set criteria for who might qualify: generally nonviolent inmates who have served more than 10 years in prison; have behaved well while incarcerated; and who would not have received as lengthy a sentence under today’s revised sentencing rules.
In the video, Obama concluded: “I believe that America, at its heart, is a nation of second chances, and I believe these folks deserve their second chance.”
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Image via AP.