What did Hunter Biden do and what is a presidential pardon?

US President Joe Biden has granted a presidential pardon to his son Hunter, who was facing punishment for two criminal cases.

The move has proved controversial as the outgoing president previously ruled out such a move. But he claimed that the cases against his son were politically motivated.

His exercise of the pardon power continues a tradition of presidents on both sides of the American political divide granting pardons to people close to them.

Hunter Biden was awaiting sentencing in two federal cases this month.

In June, he became the first child of a US president to be convicted in a criminal case related to him gun ownership. A Delaware jury found him guilty of three counts of lying about his drug use on a form when he bought a gun.

He was also awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in federal court in September tax case which focused on whether he paid enough taxes from 2016 to 2019. The nine charges included failure to file and pay taxes, tax evasion and filing a false return.

He faced up to 25 years in prison on the weapons charge and 17 years on the tax charge, though he is likely to receive much shorter rates and serve the two sentences concurrently, experts told the New York Times.

The US Constitution states that the president has broad “power to grant sentences and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.”

In this case, the president’s “full and unconditional pardon” covers any alleged federal crimes the younger Biden may have committed between January 2014 and December 2024.

A pardon is a legal pardon, ending any further punishment and restoring rights, such as the right to vote or run for public office.

Although the power of pardon is considered broad, it is not unlimited. For example, the president can only issue pardons for federal crimes.

The issue is hot because there is a question mark over Donald Trump’s conviction in his hush money case in New York. He won’t be able to pardon himself on this national level case when he returns to the White House in January.

Trump is among those who have attacked Biden for the move, which he described as “an abuse and a miscarriage of justice.”

The new president asked if Biden would also grant pardons to people accused of rioting on January 6, 2021, when Trump supporters rioted outside the US Capitol building in an attempt to disrupt the confirmation of the 2020 election results.

Trump, who has faced a series of legal problems while away from the White House, has repeatedly claimed that the US justice system is rigged against him and his supporters.

He has promised to personally pardon those who rioted in Washington. But exactly who will be pardoned, and whether the pardon will also extend to those convicted of the most serious and violent crimes, remains an open question.

There is already a long precedent for US presidents on both sides of the political divide to issue pardons, including to people close to them. This is the 26th pardon issued by Bidena democrat.

in 2020, TrumpRepublican, pardoned his daughter Ivanka’s father-in-law, Charles Kushner. Kushner was sentenced to two years in prison in 2004 on charges including tax evasion, campaign finance offenses and witness tampering.

And in 2001. Bill Clintonpardoned his younger half-brother, Roger Clinton, for a cocaine-related offense dating back to 1985.

In both cases, pardons were granted to people who had already served their sentence. President Biden’s intervention in his son’s case comes before the sentencing.

Trump has granted 237 pardons during his four years in the White House, according to the Pew Research Center, which included 143 pardons and 94 commutations. Many were in turmoil before he left office.

This number is significantly lower than his predecessor Barack Obamawho granted 1,927 pardons during his eight-year tenure, according to Pew. These were 1,715 commutations and 212 pardons.