Trump slaps Obama DOJ, PARDONS two cattle ranchers and HERE’S WHY

Today President Trump vacated the sentences of two cattle ranchers who were accused setting fire to public lands:

NY POST – President Trump on Tuesday granted clemency to Oregon ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son Steven…

“The Hammonds are multi-generation cattle ranchers in Oregon imprisoned in connection with a fire that leaked onto a small portion of neighboring public grazing land,” the White House said in a statement.

“The evidence at trial regarding the Hammonds’ responsibility for the fire was conflicting, and the jury acquitted them on most of the charges.“

It wasn’t just that the evidence was conflicting. Trump accused Obama’s DOJ of going too far in the prosecution of the Hammonds:

The statement went on to accuse the Obama administration of overzealous prosecution of the father and son.

“At the Hammonds’ original sentencing, the judge noted that they are respected in the community and that imposing the mandatory minimum, 5-year prison sentence would ‘shock the conscience’ and be ‘grossly disproportionate to the severity’ of their conduct. As a result, the judge imposed significantly
lesser sentences,” the statement continued.

“The previous administration, however, filed an overzealous appeal that resulted in the Hammonds being sentenced to five years in prison. This was unjust.”

The White House noted that Dwight Hammond, 76, had already served about three years behind bars and that his son Steven, 49, had served nearly four years in prison. The pair had also coughed up $400,000 to settle a civil suit with the feds.

“The Hammonds are devoted family men, respected contributors to their local community, and have widespread support from their neighbors, local law enforcement, and farmers and ranchers across the West. Justice is overdue for Dwight and Steven Hammond,” the statement said.

The Hammonds have maintained that they didn’t start the fires purposefully:

The Hammonds said the fires they had set on their own property to fight invasive plant species had accidentally spread to public lands.

We all know how nutjob Obama and his minions were over public lands. So I don’t doubt for a minute these men were, at the very least, overzealously prosecuted as the White House statement reads.


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