President Joe Biden allowed dangerous criminals and a cop killer to walk free in one of his final grants of clemency on Friday.
Biden commuted sentences Friday for 2,500 individuals — whom he described as “non-violent” — including several individuals convicted for illegally possessing firearms, and two men whose actions led to the death of a police officer.
Virginia attorney general Jason Miyares slammed Biden’s decision to pardon Ferrone Claiborne and Terence Richardson, who attacked Officer Allen Gibson in 1998 after he discovered them engaging in a drug deal, saying Biden and his staff “deserve scorn, shame, and derision for this despicable act.”
“Joe Biden should be ashamed, but we know that he probably doesn’t even know what he signed,” Miyares wrote in a statement.
Gibson’s daughter said she is “so disappointed that the disgraceful Biden administration has failed my family, my father, and the entire law enforcement community.”
“My heart is shattered knowing that the men that killed my father are going to be released from prison and can walk the streets freely,” Crissana Gibson said in a statement Friday. “This is a huge miscarriage of justice, and I am completely disgusted by the outgoing administration. The Virginia Attorney General’s office has worked tirelessly to keep these murderers behind bars, and I am forever grateful for their dedication and hard work.”
Former President Barack Obama previously declined to grant clemency to both individuals, according to the Virginia attorney general’s office.
Others granted clemency on Friday committed felony firearms offenses.
Ramelus D. Bradley was convicted for selling cocaine and illegally possessing a firearm as a felon.
“At the time of his arrest, law enforcement officers discovered illegal drugs and several firearms at this residence, including a firearm hidden under a pillow on a bed where an infant lay,” Bradley’s indictment stated.
In November, the Eight Circuit Court of Appeals denied Bradley’s request for compassionate release.
Demarcus Rakestraw, another criminal Biden granted clemency, pleaded guilty to distributing controlled substances and possessing a firearm as a felon, according to court records.
Stokley Austin, who was sentenced to 25 years in 2015 for intending to distribute “five kilograms or more of cocaine hydrochloride and a quantity of cocaine base” and being a felon in possession of a firearm, also had his sentence commuted by Biden.
Just last week, Austin’s request for compassionate release was denied by the Fifth Circuit.
“Today’s clemency action provides relief for individuals who received lengthy sentences based on discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, as well as outdated sentencing enhancements for drug crimes,” Biden wrote in a statement Friday. “As Congress recognized through the Fair Sentencing Act and the First Step Act, it is time that we equalize these sentencing disparities. This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities, and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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