President Trump pardoned seven people on Tuesday, including the “junk bond king” Michael R. Milken and Bernard B. Kerik, a former New York City police commissioner. He also commuted the sentences of Rod R. Blagojevich, a former governor of Illinois, and three others.
The Constitution gives presidents what the Supreme Court has ruled is the unlimited authority to grant pardons, which excuse or forgive a federal crime. A commutation, by contrast, makes a punishment milder without wiping out the underlying conviction. Both are forms of presidential clemency.
Here are the 11 people who benefited from the executive grants of clemency that Mr. Trump signed.
COMMUTATION
Rod R. Blagojevich
Former Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich of Illinois was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2011 for trying to sell or trade to the highest bidder the Senate seat that Barack Obama vacated after he was elected president. “He served eight years in jail, a long time,” President Trump said of Mr. Blagojevich, a Democrat, on Tuesday. “Seemed like a very nice person, don’t know him.”
Edward DeBartolo Jr., a former owner of the San Francisco 49ers, pleaded guilty in 1998 to concealing an extortion attempt. He was prosecuted after agreeing to pay $400,000 to Edwin W. Edwards, a former governor of Louisiana, to secure a riverboat gambling license for his gambling consortium.
Although Mr. DeBartolo avoided prison time, he was fined $1 million and was suspended for a year by the N.F.L.
Pardon
Ariel Friedler
Ariel Friedler, a technology entrepreneur, pleaded guilty in 2014 to conspiracy to access a protected computer without authorization and served two months in prison, according to a statement from the White House.
Mr. Friedler has since dedicated his time to promoting veterans issues and helping former prisoners re-enter society, the statement said.
COMMUTATION
Tynice Nichole Hall
Tynice Nichole Hall was sentenced in 2006 after she was convicted on various drug charges in Lubbock, Texas, according to the Justice Department. The evidence at trial showed that Ms. Hall’s residence was used as a stash house for drugs by her boyfriend, who was the main target of an investigation, according to court documents. The police found large quantities of crack and powder cocaine and loaded firearms in her apartment.
Ms. Hall has spent the last 14 years in prison, where she has participated in apprenticeships, completed coursework toward a college degree and taught educational programs to other inmates, the White House statement said.
Pardon
Bernard B. Kerik
Ten years ago this month, Bernard B. Kerik, a former New York City police commissioner, was sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to eight felony charges, including tax fraud and lying to White House officials. Mr. Kerik, who rose to national prominence and was a close ally of Rudolph W. Giuliani, took responsibility for his actions.
“Believe me when I say I have learned from this and I have become and will continue to become a better person,” he said in court in 2010. “I know I must be punished.” Since his conviction, Mr. Kerik has become a supporter of criminal justice and prison re-entry reform, according to a statement from the White House.
Michael R. Milken was the billionaire “junk bond king” and a well-known financier on Wall Street in the 1980s. In 1990, he pleaded guilty to securities fraud and conspiracy charges, and months later was sentenced to 10 years in prison, though his sentence was later reduced to two years. He also agreed to pay $600 million in fines and penalties. Mr. Milken was also the inspiration for the Gordon Gekko character in the film “Wall Street.”
Since he was released from prison in 1993, Mr. Milken has striven to repair his reputation by creating a nonprofit think tank, the Milken Institute, devoted to initiatives “that advance prosperity.”
COMMUTATION
Crystal Munoz
Crystal Munoz was found guilty in 2008 of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute marijuana, according to a petition filed by Texas A&M University’s Criminal Defense Clinic. Ms. Munoz was sentenced to nearly two decades in prison for drawing a map that her friends used in a large marijuana trafficking operation, according to Rolling Stone.
Over the past 12 years, Ms. Munoz has mentored people and volunteered with a hospice program while serving time in prison, according to the White House statement.
COMMUTATION
Judith Negron
Judith Negron was sentenced to 35 years in prison in 2011 for her role in orchestrating a $205 million Medicare fraud scheme as the owner of a mental health care company in Miami. Ms. Negron has served eight years in prison, and her prison warden described her as a “model inmate,” according to the White House statement.
Pardon
Paul Pogue
In 2010, Paul Pogue, the founder and former chief executive of a large construction company in Texas, was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to pay $723,0000 in fines and restitution for filing false income tax statements, according to the McKinney Courier Gazette.
The White House applauded his charitable work in a statement on Tuesday. “Despite his conviction, Mr. Pogue never stopped his charitable work,” the statement said.
Pardon
David Safavian
David Safavian, the top federal procurement official under President George W. Bush, was sentenced to a year in prison in 2009 for covering up his ties to the lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Mr. Safavian, a former chief of staff at the General Services Administration, was convicted of both obstruction of justice and making false statements.
“Having served time in prison and completed the process of rejoining society with a felony conviction, Mr. Safavian is uniquely positioned to identify problems with the criminal justice system and work to fix them,” the White House said in the statement.
Pardon
Angela Stanton
Angela Stanton, an author, television personality and motivational speaker, served six months of home confinement in 2007 for her role in a stolen vehicle ring. Her book “Lies of a Real Housewife: Tell the Truth and Shame the Devil” explores her difficult upbringing and her encounters with reality TV stars.
Recently she has begun giving interviews about her support of Mr. Trump. The White House credited her in a statement with working “tirelessly to improve re-entry outcomes for people returning to their communities upon release from prison.”