Obama hits 1,000 mark for commutations granted
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US President Barack Obama surpassed the 1,000 mark for commutations granted during his presidency on Tuesday after shortening sentences for 79 people.
Obama has been granting commutations at rapid-fire pace in his final months in office. All told, he's commuted more sentences than the past 11 presidents combined, the White House said. Most of those who have received clemency are nonviolent drug offenders, though many were also convicted of firearms violations related to drug crimes. A significant portion had been serving life sentences.
"It makes no sense for a nonviolent drug offender to be serving decades, or sometimes life, in prison," Obama wrote in a Facebook post. "That's not serving taxpayers, and it's not serving the public safety."
