In the final hours of his presidency, Donald Trump has pardoned 73 people, including his former adviser Steve Bannon, who is facing fraud charges, as was reported by the BBC.
A statement from the White House listed the 73 individuals who had received pardons and the 70 who had their sentences commuted. The president has not issued preemptive pardons for himself or family members.
Although many on the list are conventional examples of convicts whose cases have been championed by rights activists and supporters in the community, others maintain the president's trend of focusing on allies.
In particular, the White House strategist and ideological associate of President Steve Bannon have been released from custody. . He was charged in August last year with fraud over a fundraising campaign to build a wall on the US-Mexico border to stem illegal immigration, a key plank of Mr Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.
Mr. Bannon had been "an important leader in the conservative movement and is known for his political acumen", the White House said in a statement.
Steve Bannon headed Trump's campaign staff in the last months of the 2016 campaign and was appointed Chief White House strategist after winning the election. In August 2017, he left the White House.
Rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black are also pardoned. They were convicted of illicit arms trafficking. Ken Kurson is a friend of Mr Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner charged with cyberstalking during a divorce. Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter, pleaded guilty to a federal weapons charge last year. He posted a photo of himself with Mr. Trump during the election campaign praising the president's work on criminal reform.
In addition, former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has been released from custody. He has been serving a 28-year sentence on corruption charges since 2013.
A number of those pardoned have been close associates and allies, such as former campaign manager Paul Manafort, long-time ally Roger Stone and his son-in-law Jared Kushner's father, Charles. Steve Bannon adds to that list.
There has never been such a practice among presidents. Therefore, it is unclear whether he has the legal power to do so and there is no precedent of a US leader issuing such a pardon.