Show HN: Pardonned.com – A searchable database of US Pardons

Post by didgetmaster » Sat, Apr 11, 2026, 10:22 PM UTC

krapp wrote: post #114

didgetmaster wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like most political arguments, if you listen carefully; those who advocate for or against pardons, only want them to go one way. A pardon is only a protection against a 'vengeful administration' if that administration is not your party. Pardons are only a miscarriage of justice if those pardoned don't share your ideology.

I'm a leftist, and a Democrat by necessity (not by choice) and I would be fine if the power of pardon was removed for Presidents who share my ideology. I would rather have working separation of powers and reform the justice system than give one person carte blanche power to nullify it based on their whim. Not everyone making a political argument is engaging in cynical tribalism. Believe it or not, some people do actu…

Post by Spooky23 » Sat, Apr 11, 2026, 10:29 PM UTC

HWR_14 wrote: post #150

jfengel wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My (leftist) opinion is that we don't give enough pardons. By the time people get out of prison, their lives are pretty much wrecked. We should have a lot more clemency and compassion. That's what the pardon is for. If that means a ton of literal insurrectionists go free, that's fine with me. We elected someone precisely to do that. It's on the voters if we elected someone who was literally treasonous himself. I hope…

You sound like you are advocating for commutation, not pardons. Commutation lowers the penalty given to a criminal by executive decree (which the president can also do) A pardon makes it so the conviction never happened.

Post by pfannkuchen » Sat, Apr 11, 2026, 10:41 PM UTC

bloppe wrote: post #94

b00ty4breakfast wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no universe where any pardon is abolished unless there is a massive political shakeup. The entrenched political class is terrified of endangering their power and privilege even if individual players are ready to do it.

I've often wondered what would happen if a president explicitly offers to pardon anybody who murders members of Congress. Would they settle on reigning in the pardon power with an amendment? We're sort of already there. A lot of the Jan 6 rioters were openly trying to murder congressmen. The fact they weren't successful isn't super reassuring.

Post by Spooky23 » Sat, Apr 11, 2026, 10:45 PM UTC

mullingitover wrote: post #90

jmyeet wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So I have mixed feeling on this. I'm thinking of Carter fulfilling a campaign pledge to pardon draft dodgers. Whether you support that or not, he did what he said he was going to do and I'm sure only some of them had actually been charged in any way. I think that's a perfectly fine use for the pardon power. Some will point to the Hunter Biden pardon. So two things can be true at once here: it was absolutely political…

> Federal prosecutors have a ton of power. Conviction rates are 98-99%. This always gets thrown around, but the fact is they should be that high. Prosecutors shouldn't bring cases unless they have evidence of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, and DOJ prosectors don't (normally) screw around. When you see lower rates of conviction, as in the current ethically bankrupt administration, it's often malicious prosecution, a…

Post by dlev_pika » Sat, Apr 11, 2026, 10:47 PM UTC

whattheheckheck wrote: post #129

sanex wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's what Biden did for Hunter right?

Which side is likely to be petty and target family members in bad faith?