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Submit the petition to the Office of the Pardon Attorney. ... Federal convictions only. ... Reduction of sentence only. ... Completion of court challenges. A request for a commutation of a prison sentence generally is not accepted unless and until a person has begun serving that sentence.

Commutation is a form of clemency that reduces the punishment for a crime. It usually takes the form of a reduced ( commuted ) prison term, but can also reduce court-ordered fines. A commuted sentence replaces the original, court-ordered sentence.

Commutation is a form of clemency that reduces the punishment for a crime. It usually takes the form of a reduced ( commuted ) prison term, but can also reduce court-ordered fines. A commuted sentence replaces the original, court-ordered sentence.

What's the difference between a pardon and a commutation? While a pardon removes all consequences of a conviction, a commutation is a narrower grant of mercy used to shorten a prison sentence while leaving the conviction intact. Pardons are usually far more common in the federal system.

Clemency under the criminal justice system is the act by an executive member of government of extending mercy to a convicted individual. In the United States, clemency is granted by a governor for state crimes and by a president for federal crimes.

Article 72 says that the president shall have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence.

Commutation is part of the pardoning power, so the person (or board) with the pardoning power usually also exercises the power to commute sentences. Only the President may commute federal sentences; in most states, only the governor can commute a sentence. (See Pardons for a discussion of pardon boards. )

executive clemency. n. the power of a President in federal criminal cases, and the Governor in state convictions, to pardon a person convicted of a crime, commute the sentence (shorten it, often to time already served) or reduce it from death to another lesser sentence.

to change (a prison sentence or other penalty) to a less severe one: The death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. to exchange for another or for something else; give and take reciprocally; interchange.

The power to commute a sentence for a federal offense is vested in the President alone. It is an extraordinary remedy that is very rarely granted. ... You will be notified when a final decision is made on your petition, and there is no appeal from the President's decision to deny a clemency request.

Under the Constitution, the President has the authority to commute sentences for federal criminal convictions, which are those adjudicated in the United States District Courts. ... However, the President cannot commute a state criminal sentence.

In law, a commutation is the substitution of a lesser penalty for that given after a conviction for a crime. The penalty can be lessened in severity, in duration, or both. ... The conditions must be lawful and reasonable, and will typically expire when the convicted completes any remaining portion of his or her sentence.

A federal pardon in the United States is the action of the President of the United States that completely sets aside or commutes (lessens) the punishment for a federal crime. The authority to take such action is granted to the president by Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution.

Commutation is a form of clemency that reduces the punishment for a crime. It usually takes the form of a reduced ( commuted ) prison term, but can also reduce court-ordered fines. A commuted sentence replaces the original, court-ordered sentence.

A pardon, on the other hand, does not clear, seal, or erase a criminal record. In fact, on its own, a pardon does not affect the criminal record in any way. Rather, a pardon is a way of obtaining official recognition from the governor that the applicant has turned his or her life around.