U.S. Supreme Court,
Criminal,
Constitutional Law
Aug. 30, 2017
Presidential pardons and criminal contempt
When the president issues a pardon for criminal contempt of court, he is interfering with the ability of another branch of government to perform its constitutional duties.
Erwin Chemerinsky
Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law
UC Berkeley School of Law
Erwin's most recent book is "Worse Than Nothing: The Dangerous Fallacy of Originalism." He is also the author of "Closing the Courthouse," (Yale University Press 2017).
President Donald J. Trump’s pardon of Joe Arpaio, the former sheriff of Maricopa County, Ariz., was outrageous, but was it also unconstitutional? The conventional wisdom is that a president may pardon anyone accused or convicted of a federal crime. Pursuant to Article II, Section 2, of the U.S. Constitution, “The President … shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.”
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