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 While the more than 140 people
granted clemency included former aide Steve
Bannon and major Republican Party fundraiser
Elliott Broidy, Trump also used his wide ranging
powers to clear people with little apparent ties
to his administration.
Five-time Grammy Award winner Lil Wayne, whose
legal name is Dwayne Carter Jr., appeared to
support Trump on the campaign trail ahead of
Trump's reelection bid when Carter said he
backed Trump's criminal justice reform program
and economic plan for African Americans.
Carter, whose 2016 single "No Problem" won the
Best Rap Performance Grammy, pleaded guilty last
month to illegally possessing a loaded,
gold-plated handgun when his chartered jet
landed in Miami in December 2019. He faced a
sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
Black, 23, who was born Bill Kahan Kapri, is in
federal prison for making a false statement to
buy a firearm, and released the album "Bill
Israel" from behind bars.
Black pleaded guilty in August 2019, and three
months later was sentenced to three years and 10
months in prison. He was seeking compassionate
release and his commutation was supported by
religious leaders, other rappers and athletes.
Despite speculation, the list
did not include the subject of the Netflix
series "Tiger King", Joe Exotic, who is serving
a 22-year prison sentence for plotting to kill a
rival and animal cruelty.
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Most presidents have issued pardons late in
their terms. Usually processed through the
Office of the Pardon Attorney, they are intended
to address cases in which the punishment is
outsized compared to the crime.
Trump, who delivered his first pardon in August
2017, his first year in office, had issued 70 in
total before Wednesday, many of which have been
given to people who are friendly with his
administration.
Trump's pardons have also included some people
tied to celebrities, including Alice Marie
Johnson, a woman convicted on drug charges whose
case was championed by reality television star
Kim Kardashian West.
Trump has gotten involved with criminal justice
cases affecting celebrities in other ways as
well.
In 2019, Trump sought to intervene when A$AP
Rocky was detained in Sweden after a brawl in
downtown Stockholm. The rapper, whose legal name
is Rakim Mayers, and two members of his
entourage were charged with assault causing
bodily harm.
Mayers said he had acted in self-defense after
his bodyguard was attacked and was released from
custody in August.
(Reporting by Makini Brice; Editing by Scott
Malone and Lincoln Feast.)
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