Attorney General Eric Holder forgot to mention something when he announced that federal prosecutors should treat nonviolent drug crimes differently: President Obama already has the power to release inmates but is choosing not to do so.
This power lies within the president’s authority to pardon those who have criminal records or commute the sentences of current federal prisoners. Pardons are usually recommended to the president by the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney where applications are investigated and pre-selected. Yet the Obama administration has been granting clemency at a lower rate than any recent predecessors.
Figures from March 2013 show that over the course of his presidency Obama has so far granted a total of 39 pardons and denied 1,333. He has so far only accepted a single commutation, denying over 5000 applications. During his time as president George W. Bush had pardoned 1 in 33 individuals and his predecessor Bill Clinton even 1 in 8.
Nevertheless, it is not only the president himself who is to blame for these low rates. Incumbent Pardon Attorney Ronald L. Rodgers, a former military judge and federal prosecutor, who has held office since 2008, rarely dispenses endorsements. ProPublica writes that during his first two years in office the president pardoned nearly every person recommended by Rodgers for approval, but that such recommendations were rare. While the number of requests has risen, the percentage of pardons granted by President Obama has decreased over the past years.
Among the recently denied applicants is Katie Barribeau who got arrested for mailing ecstasy to her boyfriend in 2001. Although she cooperated immediately upon her arrest, President Obama denied her application to pardon her five-year probation. Barribeau is desperate to retrieve her rights as a citizen: " It was a first offense that I was terribly sorry for," she said. "But I don't want it to be on my record for the rest of my life, I want a second chance."
One pending requests that has gained media interest is that of Clarence Aaron. He is one of many prisoners given a life sentence due involvement in cocaine deal. Even though this instance was a first-time, nonviolent drug offense, Aaron was sentenced to three life terms in 1992 for being present at a deal involving nine kilograms of cocaine. He applied for a commuted sentence in 2001, which was formally denied by George W. Bush under guidance of Pardon Attorney Rodgers in 2008. ProPublica published articles claiming that Rodgers had misrepresented Aaron’s case, sparking a public debate. Aaron reapplied for clemency under President Obama. He is one of over a hundred applicants currently waiting for a decision.
If the current administration is serious about reducing sentences for non-violent drug offenders, accepting more of these requests is undoubtedly an important place to start.
