Executive Clemency: Learn the Process and Prepare

If you are thinking about executive clemency, begin with two questions:

• What relief do I want to request?

• What should I understand before I apply?

A person seeking a shorter sentence may need different information from someone seeking a pardon. Understanding the available forms of relief will help you decide what to study and how to prepare.

When I began serving my sentence, I made learning how the system operated a priority. Executive clemency offered hope, although I understood that receiving it would be a long shot. Only the President could grant clemency in my federal case. I wanted to build a record that could support a future request for relief.

Through our nonprofit, Prison Professors, I encourage people to study the process themselves. Begin with our free resources, follow links to government guidance, and write down the questions you still need to answer.

This article accompanies the first video in our Executive Clemency series. We will work through government resources in manageable lessons and connect that information with steps you can take to prepare.

Understand the Relief You Are Seeking

A pardon and a commutation serve different purposes. A pardon expresses presidential forgiveness. It does not establish innocence or erase the conviction from a person’s record. A commutation reduces all or part of a sentence while leaving the conviction in place.

A pardon can also be granted before a person completes a sentence. Read the current application instructions rather than assuming that sentence completion determines whether you can apply.

These lessons focus on federal clemency. State convictions follow the applicable state procedures. Identify the conviction and the relief you want to request before choosing an application.

Study the Government’s Instructions

Visit the Office of the Pardon Attorney. Begin with “How Clemency Works” and “Apply for Clemency.” These pages explain the process and direct you to application materials.

Applicants learn the requirements, submit their materials, and provide relevant updates. The Department of Justice reviews applications and makes recommendations. The President decides whether to grant clemency, and the Department’s recommendations do not limit that constitutional authority.

The Justice Department explains that applicants do not have to hire a lawyer. You can begin learning and organizing information yourself.

As you read, keep a page of questions. Identify documents you would need and details you do not yet understand. Save the source links and the date you reviewed them so you can return to the instructions as you prepare.

Build a Record of Your Progress

Learning about the application invites a practical question:

What would someone reviewing my request learn about the way I have responded to my circumstances?

A presentence investigation report describes a person at an earlier stage. Your conduct over time can provide additional information about your decisions, responsibilities, and preparation. Documenting that progress gives you examples to draw from when explaining how you have used your time.

Consider a hypothetical person preparing for work after prison. That person could identify a skill needed for a particular job, set a weekly study schedule, and keep examples of completed work. Journal entries could explain what the person learned, how feedback changed the next assignment, and which goal comes next. Over several months, those entries would give a reader specific examples of preparation and follow-through.

Our free lessons and Profiles course offer ways to organize that work through a biography, journal entries, book reports, and a release plan. Choose the record you want to build and keep it current.

When preparing a clemency application, you can draw from that record to explain your progress and select supporting material. Maintaining a profile does not submit an application or place its contents in your clemency file. Follow the government’s instructions for submitting written material. The Office of the Pardon Attorney states that it cannot access information sent through file-sharing services.

No collection of documents can guarantee clemency. The work can still help you develop skills, strengthen relationships, and prepare for responsibilities ahead.

Choose One Action This Week

Read the government’s overview and explain, in your own words, the relief you want to understand. Then use this question for a journal entry:

What would you like a future reviewer to understand about your preparation?

Choose one action you can complete this week, explain how it supports that goal, and set a date to review what you learned.

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