The Truth About Clemency

There is one thing President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris can agree on one thing: the process a federal prisoner must go through to attain a Presidential sentencing commutation (by way of Clemency), is fundamentally broken.

Prominent legal scholars and law professors on the frontlines of the Clemency battle such as NYU law professor Rachel Barkow and University of St. Thomas law professor Mark Osler, have consistently underscored this sentiment.  As it stands, the same punitive and unforgiving U.S. Justice Department responsible for unfairly ratcheting up countless defendant's prison sentences far beyond what is proportional to their crimes, is the same U.S. Justice Department who is essentially in charge of which prisoners deserve Clemency.

As can be expected, historically, is has been (and still is) nearly impossible for a worthy Clemency candidate/federal prisoner to receive a sentencing commutation if he uses traditional channels to file his petition, The Office of Pardon. Adding to the inherent unfairness of having the fox guarding the hen house, is the mystery and opacity that pervades the Clemency process. In short, The Office of Pardon is like a black hole - the process lacks transparency.

Thus, the Clemency process is in need of reform.

Breathing new life into the Clemency process via a smart paradigm shift would allow well-deserving federal prisoners, who are vetted, a legitimate shot at receiving a second chance. In the absence of such reform, this important tool (Clemency) will remain hollow and many worthy people who are serving brutally long and purely punitive prison terms, will languish in prison for no good reason. As such, we implore you to help us bring awareness to this issue.