President Donald Trump signed 11 pardons on Friday, granting clemency to individuals he said were unfairly prosecuted during the Biden administration, including several convicted of violating federal emissions regulations and a former business associate of lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
In a Truth Social post, Trump announced that he had pardoned six people convicted for modifying vehicles in violation of the Clean Air Act.
“It is my Great Honor to have just signed Pardons for six people who were persecuted by the Biden Administration, and were in, or being sent to, prison, for ‘fixing their car,’” Trump wrote.
“While I know this sounds ridiculous, it is nevertheless a fact, and part of the Weaponization and Stupidity that our Country had to endure during four long years of Sleepy Joe Biden.”
“I AM SETTING THEM ALL FREE, RIGHT NOW!” he added.
According to the White House, most of the pardons involved individuals convicted of tampering with vehicle emissions control systems by installing or selling “defeat devices” and engine tuners that bypassed federal environmental regulations.
The White House argued that the prosecutions stemmed from regulatory policies the Trump administration has since rolled back.
Among those pardoned were Joshua Davis, Matt Geouge, Jonathan Achtemeier, Tim Clancy, brothers Ryan and Wade Lalone, Barry Pierce, Aaron Rudolf and Mackenzie Spurlock.
White House descriptions characterized the recipients as small-business owners, mechanics and truck operators who were excessively punished under environmental regulations that have since been relaxed.
The administration also pardoned Adam Kidan, who pleaded guilty in 2006 to conspiracy and fraud charges stemming from an attempt to purchase SunCruz Casinos alongside lobbyist Jack Abramoff using a counterfeit wire transfer document.
Kidan was sentenced to 70 months in prison and released in 2009.
Following his release, Kidan entered the staffing industry and helped build Chartwell Staffing Solutions into one of the nation’s largest staffing companies before later becoming president of Empire Workforce Solutions.
According to the White House, Kidan’s businesses have helped place more than 250,000 people in entry-level jobs.
The final pardon went to Jack Harvard, who was convicted of bank fraud in Texas during the 1980s.
The White House said Harvard earned clemency because of his conduct after serving his sentence, noting that he now operates Texas Safari Ranch, raises endangered animals and allows U.S. and NATO military personnel to train on his property without charge, per the New York Post.
The latest pardons continue Trump’s criticism of what he has repeatedly described as the Biden administration’s weaponization of the justice system.
The White House argued that several of those pardoned were prosecuted under regulations that are no longer being enforced following changes implemented by the Trump administration.
Trump has made the use of presidential clemency a recurring feature of his second term, frequently granting pardons to individuals he believes were subjected to politically motivated prosecutions or excessive federal penalties.
