Former President Donald Trump on Thursday formally notified the judge overseeing the Georgia election subversion case that he “may” try to move his state case into federal court.
That happened in the Weimar Republic, too. Hitler wrote Mein Kampf in prison, and plenty of people got arrested for things like the Beer Hall Putsch. Stay vigilant and organized, politically cooperate with anyone who opposes the Republicans, don't take it for granted that the courts will handle this neo fascist ideology for us, you know?
This is true, but what I have not seen discussed is that the Georgia Pardon and Parole board can consider a request to commute the sentence immediately, and can choose to reduce or eliminate any sentence handed down.
the Georgia Pardon and Parole board can consider a request to commute the sentence immediately, and can choose to reduce or eliminate any sentence handed down.
Thanks, (this is good information to know, but) I hate it.
Hmm. I was under the impression that the governor couldn't even pardon someone in GA unless they had served out 5 years of a sentence, thus guaranteeing jail time.
You're right. A pardon in Georgia cannot even be requested from the Pardon and Parole Board until five years after any sentence is served. Commutation of a sentence is a different thing altogether.
Pardon is "You don't receive any punishment for this crime." Commutation is "After consideration, the sentence you received is being reduced." And in commutation, the sentence can be reduced to zero.
The Georgia Pardon and Parole Board can consider a request for commutation immediately after sentencing, and can commute a sentence immediately, again, that's reducing a sentence, including a 100% reduction.
How do you interpret the linked article? To me it read as an essay that argued that pardons neither firmly convey guilt nor innocence because there exists mixed precedence and reasoning for both.
That’s only true if he can pardon himself for the election interference. That’s not going to happen unless they move the case to federal court.
That wouldn't work either. The first step in a pardon is that the person convicted has to admit guilt to trying to steal the election. If he straight up admits guilt that's clearly a Fourteenth Amendment violation.
This is a common misconception. While a pardon does mean some things (like removing your ability to plead the 5th in relation to the related case), it remains very disputed whether it constitutes an admission of guilt: