188
votes
Accepted
Why does the pardon of Arpaio show contempt for the rule of law?
tl;dr: Arpaio was sentenced for violating a court order, which ordered him to stop violating the law. In this case, a presidential pardon takes away any recourse the judiciary has, thus circumventing ...
- 36k
75
votes
Accepted
Can a person refuse a presidential pardon?
It is possible to reject a pardon. Referring to United States v. Wilson:
There is nothing peculiar in a pardon which ought to distinguish it in
this respect from other facts; no legal principle ...
- 5,437
67
votes
Can a person refuse a presidential pardon?
The question is theoretical. But there's no need to theorize. There's at least one case of a convict successfully rejecting a presidential pardon. The Supreme Court ruled on this case in 1833, saying ...
- 10.4k
50
votes
Why does the pardon of Arpaio show contempt for the rule of law?
First, while nobody doubts that the act is lawful, the right to pardon is controversial by itself. It is a power by which the executive "breaks" the separation of powers and changes a decision coming ...
- 31.2k
49
votes
What checks exist against overuse of presidential pardons in the USA?
Given that "an impeachable offense is whatever half of the House of Representatives considers it to be", impeachment could be a possible remedy if a President's actions were flagrantly ...
- 1,875
42
votes
Accepted
Could Snowden (in theory) be pardoned by the US president?
Yes, the constitution allows pardoning people who haven't been charged.
Reduction of a sentence is not technically considered pardoning. A President can pardon someone who hasn't be charged. Pardons ...
- 46.5k
37
votes
Accepted
Can a US president give preemptive pardons?
In Ex parte Garland, 71 U.S. (4 Wall.) 333 (1866), the Supreme Court ruled on the limitations of the presidential pardon:
153 The Constitution provides that the President 'shall have power to
grant ...
CDJB♦
- 105k
35
votes
Accepted
How was this person considered for a pardon in Iceland?
The law in Iceland dates from the 1940s, and is modelled on Danish laws of the period.
Pre-1940, an adult convicted of a serious crime (one which is "outrageous to public opinion" and leads to a ...
- 115k
34
votes
Accepted
How do Trump's pardons of other people protect himself from potential future criminal investigations?
As best I can tell, these pardons are meant as rewards for being loyal to Trump, not as protections. They don't actually protect Trump in any way: the contrary, in fact, since pardoning someone ...
- 67.7k
33
votes
Accepted
Could a US President abuse their pardon powers to unilaterally make laws?
For instance, if I really hate littering, and I somehow become
President of the United States, could I effectively make littering a
capital offense by promising to immediately pardon anyone who ...
- 8,859
33
votes
Why do presidential pardons exist in a country having a clear separation of powers?
There is a proverb that hard cases make bad laws. The pardon power is a check and balance on laws and their application.
The legislative has to write laws with general scope.
The judiciary ...
- 106k
30
votes
Accepted
Can a United States President issue a self-pardon?
It remains unclear if the President can pardon himself.
However, the Constitution gives broad leeway to who a President can pardon.
Article 2, Section 3, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution gives the ...
- 46.5k
29
votes
Accepted
Why do presidential pardons exist in a country having a clear separation of powers?
Question: Why do presidential pardons exist in a country having a
clear separation of powers?
In a word: history...
The case of the US is tied to that of the UK. In the UK you have the Royal ...
- 30.5k
29
votes
On what basis are pardoning decisions made by presidents or governors when exercising their pardoning power?
Usually there is none. The legitimization for pardon powers is usually that there should be a person in the loop who is able to look at the individual case (unlike the legislature) but isn't bound to ...
- 74.8k
27
votes
What checks exist against overuse of presidential pardons in the USA?
Theoretically, the congress could try to impeach.
BUT, in reality, presidents often wait until his final days/hours to grant the most controversial pardons.
And once a pardon is granted, there is no ...
- 1,297
23
votes
Is there a preferred time in their presidency when US presidents pardon the most people?
The most popular month for both Pardons and Clemency is December, during the holidays. Clemency (commuting the sentence without restoring rights) is far more popular among modern presidents than ...
- 1,563
23
votes
Accepted
Has Matt Bevin explained his reasoning for the pardons he has recently issued?
Yes, at least depending on what you count as "explaining". He also went on a 20-post twitter tirade about it.
His main points seem to be that, first and foremost, the criticism is manufactured by ...
- 16.5k
22
votes
Why do presidential pardons exist in a country having a clear separation of powers?
The President has pardon power in part to prevent abuses by the other branches of government
Let's start with this statement of yours:
In a political system having separation of powers and where ...
- 15.6k
18
votes
Can the US president pardon a non-US citizen?
...He shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.
The president can grant a pardon for offences against the United States. ...
- 115k
18
votes
Accepted
Can the U.S. President pardon a corporation?
Corporations can be, and often are, found guilty of criminal violations, which are normally punished by fines, although in some cases loss of some license, or a ban from being eligible for government ...
- 2,621
18
votes
How do Trump's pardons of other people protect himself from potential future criminal investigations?
I haven't read the article, but I'm guessing people in prison are more likely to strike a deal and help with an investigation, in return for some favors like early release etc. I don't recall the ...
- 145k
17
votes
Accepted
How can US presidents commute criminal sentences?(i.e. Manning Jan 17), but UK Prime-ministers can't?
The US President's Pardon-Power
The United States Constitution gives the President the ability to pardon criminal offences:
he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against ...
- 23.8k
16
votes
Could Snowden (in theory) be pardoned by the US president?
As far as I am aware, pardoning means to reduce a sentence.
That's commutation. While that's part of the pardon power in the United States, that's not actually a pardon.
As per Wikipedia:
...
- 89.3k
16
votes
On what basis are pardoning decisions made by presidents or governors when exercising their pardoning power?
The entire point of pardon powers (as per the answers to your earlier question) is that they are discretionary, to allow for justice when the legal system produces an unjust outcome.
Having written ...
- 1,192
14
votes
Could a US President abuse their pardon powers to unilaterally make laws?
The House of Representatives can only impeach the President for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." If the House wanted to (and they almost certainly would), they would ...
- 6,570
14
votes
Accepted
Will Trump's pardons remain valid if he is impeached?
Will the people Trump pardoned, such as Joe Arpaio and Scooter Libby
remain vindicated in the event of Trump's impeachment?
Any pardon that an impeached President makes prior to being convicted on ...
- 73k
14
votes
Why do presidential pardons exist in a country having a clear separation of powers?
No matter how you structure the government, on any point there is always somebody who has the final say. The only alternative is that nothing falling under that topic is ever finally settled, until ...
- 1,607
13
votes
Can presidential pardons be made and then classified as secret to avoid making the pardon public?
The Department of Justice is an office of the Executive. If the Chief Executive desires that they refrain from prosecuting a case, he may simply issue that order behind closed doors.
There are very ...
- 1,772
12
votes
Could a US President abuse their pardon powers to unilaterally make laws?
U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 2, Clause 1:
The President [...] shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment. [...
- 4,130
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