Most Controversial Pardons Ever Granted

Richard Nixon

Gerald Ford's 1974 'full, free, and absolute' pardon of Nixon before any indictment remains the gold standard of controversial clemency, instantly tanking Ford's approval and arguably costing him the 1976 election. Critics called it a corrupt bargain; defenders said it spared the

Year Granted: 1974Pardoned By: Gerald FordCrime / Allegation: Watergate scandal / obstruction of justice (never indicted)Controversy Level: 10/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (never charged)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 30 %

added by IJRin 13 rankings

Marc Rich

Bill Clinton pardoned billionaire fugitive financier Marc Rich on his last day in office in 2001, after Rich's ex-wife had donated heavily to Clinton causes. Rich had fled to Switzerland rather than face tax evasion and illegal trading with Iran charges, and the pardon became sho

Year Granted: 2001Pardoned By: Bill ClintonCrime / Allegation: Tax evasion and illegal trading with IranControversy Level: 9/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (fugitive, never returned to face charges)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 11 %

added by IJRMarc Rich

Roger Stone

Trump commuted Stone's sentence in 2020 then fully pardoned him in the final weeks of his presidency, erasing convictions for witness tampering and lying to Congress tied to the Russia investigation. Stone never spent a day in prison, fueling accusations that the pardon rewarded

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Obstruction, witness tampering, lying to CongressControversy Level: 8.5/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (commuted before prison, later pardoned)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 20 %

added by IJRin 2 rankings

Michael Flynn

Trump's 2020 pardon of his former national security adviser wiped away a guilty plea for lying to the FBI about contacts with Russia's ambassador. Flynn had already pleaded guilty twice, making the pardon feel to critics like a direct intervention in the Mueller investigation's f

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Lying to the FBI about Russia contactsControversy Level: 8/10Prison Time Served: 0 yearsSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 25 %

added by IJR

Paul Manafort

Trump's onetime campaign chairman was serving time for bank and tax fraud when a full pardon arrived in late 2020, ending his sentence early. Manafort's role as a central figure in the Russia probe made the pardon look, to opponents, like a reward for refusing to cooperate with p

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Bank and tax fraud, Russia investigation figureControversy Level: 8/10Prison Time Served: approximately 2 years (released early)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 22 %

added by IJRin 2 rankingsPaul Manafort

Joe Arpaio

The self-styled 'America's toughest sheriff' was found guilty of criminal contempt for defying a court order to stop racial profiling in Arizona traffic stops. Trump pardoned him in 2017 before sentencing, making it one of his first and most polarizing uses of clemency power.

Year Granted: 2017Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Criminal contempt of court over profiling caseControversy Level: 8/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (never sentenced)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 22 %

added by IJRJoe Arpaio

Steve Bannon

On his final day in office in 2021, Trump pardoned former strategist Steve Bannon, who was awaiting trial for allegedly defrauding donors to a private border-wall fundraising campaign. Because it came before any trial or conviction, critics called it an unusually preemptive shiel

Year Granted: 2021Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Fraud related to border wall fundraisingControversy Level: 7.5/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (pardoned before trial)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 24 %

added by IJRin 3 rankingsSteve Bannon

Hunter Biden

Joe Biden's 2024 pardon of his son Hunter over gun and tax charges came after repeated public promises that he would not intervene, making the reversal a flashpoint even among the president's own supporters. The sweeping, years-spanning scope of the pardon drew comparisons to Mar

Year Granted: 2024Pardoned By: Joe BidenCrime / Allegation: Gun charges and tax evasionControversy Level: 8/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (pardoned before sentencing)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 25 %

added by IJRHunter Biden

Caspar Weinberger

George H.W. Bush pardoned his former defense secretary and five others in 1992 just before Weinberger's Iran-Contra trial, effectively ending the independent counsel's investigation. Special prosecutor Lawrence Walsh accused Bush of covering up his own possible role in the scanda

Year Granted: 1992Pardoned By: George H. W. BushCrime / Allegation: Iran-Contra affair, perjury chargesControversy Level: 7/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (pardoned before trial)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 35 %

added by IJRCaspar Weinberger

Patty Hearst

Kidnapped heiress-turned-bank-robber Patty Hearst had her sentence commuted by Jimmy Carter in 1979 after serving under two years, then received a full pardon from Bill Clinton in 2001. Her case forever complicated debates about coercion, celebrity, and clemency for crimes commit

Year Granted: 2001Pardoned By: Bill Clinton (commuted earlier by Jimmy Carter)Crime / Allegation: Bank robbery under alleged coercionControversy Level: 6.5/10Prison Time Served: approximately 2 years before commutationSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 40 %

added by IJRPatty Hearst

Susan McDougal

A Whitewater-era figure who served roughly 18 months, including jail time for refusing to testify against the Clintons, McDougal received a full pardon from Bill Clinton on his last day in office in 2001. Bundled with the Marc Rich pardon, it added to accusations of a farewell cl

Year Granted: 2001Pardoned By: Bill ClintonCrime / Allegation: Whitewater-related fraud and contemptControversy Level: 6/10Prison Time Served: approximately 18 months servedSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 38 %

added by IJRSusan McDougal

Rod Blagojevich

The former Illinois governor, famously caught on wiretap trying to sell Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat, had his 14-year sentence commuted by Trump in 2020 after roughly eight years served. The move was controversial partly because Blagojevich had appeared on Trump's own reali

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Corruption, attempted sale of a Senate seatControversy Level: 7/10Prison Time Served: approximately 8 years of a 14-year sentenceSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 30 %

added by IJRRod Blagojevich

Dinesh D'Souza

Conservative commentator Dinesh D'Souza pleaded guilty to campaign finance fraud in 2014 and served community confinement before Trump granted a full pardon in 2018. Critics saw it as clemency for an outspoken political ally rather than a response to any injustice in the original

Year Granted: 2018Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Campaign finance fraudControversy Level: 6/10Prison Time Served: 0 years in prison (community confinement only)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 33 %

added by IJRDinesh D'Souza

Conrad Black

Media mogul Conrad Black served over three years for fraud and obstruction before Trump pardoned him in 2019, citing a personal friendship and Black's flattering biography of the president. The overt personal connection made this one of the more nakedly transactional-seeming pard

Year Granted: 2019Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Fraud and obstruction of justiceControversy Level: 6/10Prison Time Served: approximately 3.5 years servedSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 35 %

added by IJRConrad Black

Michael Milken

The 1980s 'junk bond king' served about two years for securities fraud before Trump pardoned him in 2020, decades after his Wall Street downfall became a symbol of financial-era excess. Supporters pointed to his philanthropy; critics saw a wealthy financier getting a second act u

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Securities fraudControversy Level: 6/10Prison Time Served: approximately 2 years servedSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 40 %

added by IJRMichael Milken

Chelsea Manning

Barack Obama commuted whistleblower Chelsea Manning's 35-year sentence to about seven years served, ending one of the most divisive leak cases in modern history days before leaving office in 2017. Supporters called it overdue justice for a whistleblower; critics said it endangere

Year Granted: 2017Pardoned By: Barack ObamaCrime / Allegation: Leaking classified documents to WikiLeaksControversy Level: 7/10Prison Time Served: approximately 7 years of a 35-year sentenceSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 45 %

added by IJRin 2 rankingsChelsea Manning

Edward DeBartolo Jr.

The former San Francisco 49ers owner avoided prison with probation after admitting he failed to report an extortion scheme by a Louisiana governor, and Trump pardoned him in 2020. As a sports-world figure the pardon drew less national fury than others, but still fed the pattern o

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Failure to report an extortion and bribery schemeControversy Level: 5/10Prison Time Served: 0 years (probation only)Self-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 42 %

added by IJR

George Papadopoulos

A minor former Trump campaign adviser who served about two weeks for lying to the FBI about Russian contacts, Papadopoulos received a full pardon from Trump in 2020. Though his sentence was already short, the symbolism of pardoning a Russia-probe figure kept it in the controversy

Year Granted: 2020Pardoned By: Donald TrumpCrime / Allegation: Lying to the FBI during the Russia investigationControversy Level: 5.5/10Prison Time Served: approximately 2 weeks servedSelf-Pardon: —Public Approval at Time: 40 %

added by IJRGeorge Papadopoulos