President Issues 16 Pardons, Commutes Drug Sentence

WASHINGTON (AP) President Bush issues 16 pardons to minor criminals Friday and commuted the sentence of an Iowa man serving time for a drug conviction. <br/><br/>One of the pardons went to an Oklahoma

Friday, December 22nd 2006, 8:10 am

By: News On 6

WASHINGTON (AP) President Bush issues 16 pardons to minor criminals Friday and commuted the sentence of an Iowa man serving time for a drug conviction.

One of the pardons went to an Oklahoma man convicted of making false statements in a bank loan application in 1991. Jearld David Swanner of Lexington, Oklahoma, was sentenced December 6th, 1991 to three years of probation.

He and six others received no prison or jail time, instead getting probation or small fines. The longest sentence was nine years, for aiding cocaine distribution, followed by a six-year term for conspiracy to possess marijuana.

With this batch, Bush has issued 113 pardons and commuted three sentences in his nearly six years in the White House.

A pardon amounts to federal forgiveness for one's crime, while a commutation cuts short an existing prison term.