President Joe Biden has pardoned six people who served time in prison after being convicted of murder and drug and alcohol-related crimes, including an 80-year-old woman who was convicted of killing her abusive husband nearly a half-century ago and a man who pleaded guilty to using a telephone for a cocaine transaction in the 1970s.
The pardons, announced on Friday, mean that the crimes’ criminal records have been expunged. They come just a few months after the Democratic president pardoned thousands of people convicted under federal law of “simple possession” of marijuana. Earlier this year, he also pardoned three people and commuted the sentences of 75 others.
“President Biden believes that America is a country of second chances, and that providing meaningful opportunities for redemption and rehabilitation empowers those who have been incarcerated to become productive, law-abiding members of society,” a White House official said, adding that second chances for those who have demonstrated their rehabilitation should be a bipartisan issue.
Beverly Ann Ibn-Tamas, 80, passed away in Columbus, Ohio
Ibn-Tamas was convicted of murdering her husband at the age of 33. Her husband allegedly beat her, verbally abused her, and threatened her. She told jurors she shot him seconds after he assaulted her while she was pregnant.
Swansea, South Carolina resident Charles Byrnes-Jackson, 77
When he was 18, Byrnes-Jackson pleaded guilty to possessing and selling spirits without tax stamps in a single illegal whiskey transaction. He attempted to enlist in the Marines but was turned down due to his conviction.
72-year-old John Dix Nock III of St. Augustine, Florida
Nock pleaded guilty to using his property as a marijuana grow house 27 years ago. He did not cultivate the plants, but he was sentenced to six months in community confinement. He now owns a general contracting company.
Yuma, Arizona resident Gary Parks Davis, 66
Davis admitted to using a telephone for a cocaine transaction when he was 22 years old. He completed probation in 1981 after serving a six-month sentence in a county jail on nights and weekends. According to the White House, Davis earned a college degree and worked steadily after the offense, including owning a landscaping business and managing construction projects. He has done community service and volunteered at his children’s high school.
Dublin, California resident Edward Lincoln De Coito III, 50
De Coito, then 23, pleaded guilty to being a part of a marijuana trafficking conspiracy. After nearly two years in prison, he was released in December 2000.
Winters, California resident Vincente Ray Flores, 37.
Flores, then 19, consumed ecstasy and alcohol while serving in the Air Force and later pleaded guilty at a special court-martial. He was sentenced to four months in prison, a pay cut of $2,800, and a reduction in rank.
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President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill celebrate Christmas at White House, attend mass and more
