Biden Pressured to Commute Sentence of ‘Hero’ Who Exposed Trump’s Taxes

Update:

Senior Vice President for Tax Policy at Patriotic Millionaires, Bob Lord, and Kenny Stancil, a senior researcher at the Revolving Door Project, penned an opinion piece in Rolling Stone on Wednesday. They spotlighted a new campaign that was launched to encourage President Biden to reduce the prison term of Charles Littlejohn. This movement began with the introduction of a website the previous day, designed to amplify the public’s plea for commutation.

Earlier:

As U.S. President Joe Biden’s current term approaches its final month, this week saw the launch of a campaign by two advocacy organizations. They are urging the President to commute the prison sentence of a former Internal Revenue Service contractor. Charles Littlejohn, who is serving a five-year sentence for disclosing confidential tax return information about affluent Americans, including then President-elect Donald Trump, is at the center of this advocacy.

The campaign, a joint effort by the Revolving Door Project and Patriotic Millionaires, aims to persuade Biden to reduce Littlejohn’s sentence to 10 months, the maximum duration initially recommended under federal guidelines, from the current five years. Additionally, Littlejohn was fined $5,000 after admitting guilt to the charges in October 2023.

On Monday, the campaign highlighted a letter to Biden penned by four tax law professors. They argued that Littlejohn’s sentence was excessively severe compared to penalties given to overt tax evaders recently.

The letter emphasizes that Littlejohn, who supplied tax data on Trump to The New York Times and shared information about other billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk with ProPublica, acted based on a firm belief in public transparency.

“I’ve been a tax lawyer for 40 years, vocally criticizing the tax avoidance strategies of the ultra-rich over the past decade,” said Bob Lord. “However, no amount of technical descriptions can match the impact of Littlejohn’s revelations about figures like Donald Trump and Jeff Bezos, who paid zero income tax.”

“Although he broke the law, Littlejohn ultimately provided a significant service by revealing the extent of tax privileges for the wealthy,” Lord continued. “If his actions motivate lawmakers to overhaul our tax system and curb excessive wealth, he will have played a crucial role in protecting American democracy.”

Leading the letter, Reuven Avi-Yonah, a law professor at the University of Michigan, described Littlejohn as a “public hero.”

The professors highlighted disparities in legal consequences for tax violations, noting cases where massive tax evasion led to non-prosecution agreements, such as Alon Farhy’s case. They also mentioned instances where sentences were significantly lighter for more grievous tax-related offenses.

“There is a stark contrast between leaking tax information and committing tax evasion in terms of both the scope of potential offenses and the frequency of unpunished violations,” the professors stated.

As Biden nears the end of his term, he has granted approximately 1,500 commutations and 39 pardons, including controversial ones for his son Hunter Biden and Michael Conahan, a former judge involved in a corruption scandal.

With Trump’s return to power on the horizon, advocates are urging Biden to commute the sentences of 40 federal death row inmates and consider pardons for individuals like Leonard Peltier and Steven Donziger.

Earlier this month, Politico Magazine reported that Biden is contemplating preemptive pardons for various public officials potentially targeted by Trump, who has promised to retaliate against his political adversaries.