Valuable reminder that Prez pardons are not the same as expungements

In this post from October 2022 following up Prez Biden’s first major (but still minor) decision to grant pardons to federal marijuana possession offenders, I lamented that he missed an important opportunity to prod Congress to follow the lead of so many states in expanding mechanisms to seal or expunge past convictions.  At the federal level, no general record relief laws are in place (though a number of bills have been proposed to remedy this legal gap), and that means many thousands of low-level federal offenders can only hope for a presidental pardon and, even if getting an act of clemency, such relief does not formally operate to expunge their  convictions.

That old post came to mind upon seeing this new piece at Marijuana Moment by Kyle Jaeger headlined ”  Biden Falsely Suggests Marijuana Pardons ‘Expunged’ Records And Released Prisoners While Campaigning On ‘Promises Kept’.”  Here are excerpts (with links from the original):

President Joe Biden is again inflating the impact of his pardons for marijuana offenses, falsely suggesting that his act of clemency “expunged” records and that people were released from prison.  “A promise made and a promise kept,” he said during a campaign speech in South Carolina on Saturday.  “I keep my promises when I said no one — no one — should be in prison for merely possessing marijuana or using it, and their records should be expunged,” Biden said.

The president has routinely framed the mass cannabis pardon as an example of him fulfilling campaign pledges, but he’s also frequently misstated the practical effects of the action.  A presidential pardon represents formal forgiveness from the government, but it does not expunge the record.

Several thousands of people have received the pardon for federal marijuana possession offenses under a pair of proclamations issued in 2022 and last month. The Justice Department has been distributing certificates to eligible people who apply for the largely symbolic document.   “The pardon means that you’re forgiven, but you still have a criminal record,” the certificate says.

Also, of those thousands who earned the clemency, no one was released from prison as a result, despite Biden insinuating as much. Federal prosecutions for possession alone are very rare.  Advocates have pointed out, however, that there are still people in federal prison over other non-violent marijuana offenses….

But by repeatedly touting his mass cannabis pardon, it seems Biden is aware of the political popularity of marijuana reform. And a recent poll suggests he stands to gain significantly in terms of favorability if his scheduling directive results in a reclassification under federal law.  It found that voters’ impression of the president jumped a net 11 points after hearing about the possible implications of the rescheduling review — and that includes an 11-point favorability swing among young voters 18-25 who will be critical to his reelection bid.