Donald Trump has granted clemency to over 1,600 people during his second term. Now, one of his former impeachment lawyers is following that same “pardon playbook,” a system that has rewarded allies of the president and been driven by a desire for political retribution.
The lawyer, David Schoen, is representing Michael Sessa and Vic Orena, who were convicted in 1992 and then sentenced to life in prison for their involvement in the Mafia. Schoen requested pardons or commuted sentences for the two inmates in a letter to Trump on December 24, a copy of which was obtained by The Free Press.
Schoen zeroed in on the fact that the prosecutor in the cases against Sessa and Orena was Andrew Weissmann—a foe of Trump’s who led Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director Robert Mueller’s special counsel team that investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election.
