OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Hearing of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties - Congressman Cohen Presides at Hearing on Presidential Clemency

Hearing

Date: March 5, 2020
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Constitution Executive Branch Legal

Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), Chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, today presided over a hearing on "Presidential Clemency and Opportunities for Reform."

The hearing reviewed the Constitutional provision that gives presidents the power to grant commutations and pardons for those convicted of crimes against the United States. Witnesses noted that, under President Obama and his predecessors, applications for clemency went through a vigorous review by the U.S. Department of Justice. However, under President Trump, that process has been bypassed in favor of the chaotic caprice of celebrity and well-connected advocates.

In his opening statement, Chairman Cohen said:

"With President Trump, I am afraid that we have reached a new low when it comes to the clemency power -- in terms of the number of clemency petitions he has granted, his seemingly self-interested motivations for his clemency decisions, and his unwillingness to use a systematic, transparent and objective process for considering clemency petitions…

"Justice is supposed to be blind. The thousands serving time for a non-violent drug offense do not have Kim Kardashian or Sylvester Stallone to plead their cases for clemency, but they are just as deserving of relief, or maybe more so. These non-violent individuals should be released based on their records, not on celebrity endorsements or the arbitrary whims of the President."

See Chairman Cohen's full opening statement here. See his round of questions to the witnesses here.

Witnesses at today's hearing were:

Kemba Smith Pradia, Founder of the Kemba Smith Foundation, whose sentence was commuted by President Clinton;
Cynthia W. Roseberry, Deputy Director, National Policy Advocacy Department, American Civil Liberties Union;
Mark Osler, Professor and Chairman, University of St. Thomas School; and
Rachel E. Barkow, Vice Dean and Professor of regulatory Law and policy, New York University School of Law.


Source
arrow_upward