NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A New York City man who was sentenced to 10 years for a non-violent drug offense in 2017 had his sentence commuted by President Joe Biden along with over 70 others, the administration announced Tuesday.
Eddie Matteus pleaded guilty in 2016 to heroin and cocaine drug charges in a New York federal court case. The charges carried a 10-year mandatory minimum.
Matteus appealed his sentence in 2020, arguing his lawyer failed to properly advise and represent him. His appeal was denied and later that same year, Matteus applied for a compassionate release after contracting COVID twice in five months. That application was also denied.
Under Biden’s sentence commutation, Matteus’ sentence will end on April 26, 2023, with the remainder of his time to be served in home confinement.
“America is a nation of laws and second chances, redemption, and rehabilitation,” Biden said in a statement announcing the clemencies. “Elected officials on both sides of the aisle, faith leaders, civil rights advocates, and law enforcement leaders agree that our criminal justice system can and should reflect these core values that enable safer and stronger communities.”
Along with the 75 sentence commutations, Biden announced three pardons, including one for a Kennedy-era Secret Service agent convicted of federal bribery charges that he tried to sell a copy of an agency file.
Many of those who received commutations have been serving their sentences on home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several were serving lengthy sentences and would have received lesser terms had they been convicted today for the same offenses as a result of the 2018 bipartisan sentencing reform ushered into law by the Trump administration.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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