U.S. President Donald Trump speaks next to U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during the signing ceremony for an executive order on mail ballots, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., March 31, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci
Two lawyers were aghast at new reporting that found some of the people President Donald Trump has pardoned went on crime sprees once they were freed.
The New York Times's editorial board argued in a new opinion piece on Tuesday that Trump has abandoned the traditional approach of granting sweeping pardons at the end of a presidential term, and that decision has become "disastrous." For instance, the editorial notes 12 separate crimes that have been committed by people Trump has pardoned, ranging from assault to possession of child pornography and child molestation.
Glenn Kirschner, a former U.S. Attorney, and Liz Oyer, a former White House pardon attorney, discussed the crimes committed by Trump's pardon recipients in a new episode of the "Justice Matters" podcast that Kirschner hosts.
"Those crimes are on Donald Trump's hands!" Kirschner said.
Oyer warned that the Times reporting may be "the tip of the iceberg." She said she did a quick search and found 22 cases where someone pardoned for participating in the Jan. 6 insurrection had a history of abusing women, minors, or presented stalking behavior.
"They're really the types of heinous crimes that generally would be disqualifying from consideration for a presidential pardon," Oyer said.