This story will be updated.
A Mainer was the recipient of one of President Joe Biden’s 39 pardons he issued Thursday while also commuting the prison sentences of nearly 1,500 people in what the White House called the largest one-day act of clemency in modern presidential history.
The White House listed Michael Gary Pelletier, 67, of Augusta on the list of pardon recipients as Biden prepares to leave office next month. The list only said Pelletier had pleaded guilty to a nonviolent offense and did not go into further detail or describe his punishment.
But the pardon announcement noted Pelletier served 14 years in the U.S. Coast Guard, where he participated in nearly 800 search-and-rescue operations and saved 32 lives. He also worked for the Secret Service and received numerous citations and awards, per the White House.
“Friends, colleagues and those who know Mr. Pelletier describe him as honest, dependable and committed to his country and community,” the White House said.
Pelletier was honorably discharged and later served in the Coast Guard Reserve. After his conviction, Pelletier worked for nearly 20 years at a water treatment facility. The White House also said that he volunteered for his county HAZMAT team, has grown vegetables for a soup kitchen and volunteered to help wounded veterans and their families.
The White House said the 39 pardons went to people in various states who were convicted of nonviolent offenses, including drug crimes, and that they had “turned their lives around.” The commutations went to about 1,500 people who were serving long prison sentences that would have been shorter under current laws and policies. Biden said they were on home confinement since the COVID-19 pandemic and had successfully reintegrated into their communities.
Biden, who is leaving office next month after President-elect Donald Trump beat Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 election, received criticism earlier this month for pardoning his son, Hunter, after previously saying he would not pardon him after his convictions in federal gun and tax-related cases. Presidents of both parties in recent history have issued a flurry of pardons and commutations at the end of their time in office.
Democratic lawmakers and advocates are still lobbying Biden to commute the sentences of the 40 people on federal death row.
“My administration will continue reviewing clemency petitions to advance equal justice under the law, promote public safety, support rehabilitation and reentry and provide meaningful second chances,” Biden said.
