A conviction and sentence isn’t required for a pardon. Caspar Weinberger was pardoned by George H.W. Bush before he came to trial over his part in the Iran-Contra affair. Some think Bush did this to avoid evidence coming out in the trial which might implicate him. He acted on the advice of a certain William Barr.
There’d be nothing stopping Trump from resigning to allow Pence to become President after which Pence could pardon Trump. After all, Gerald Ford pardoned Nixon over Watergate (which is also an example of a pre-emptive pardon before any charges had been laid). I doubt if Biden would be stupid enough to pardon Trump and his cronies. Such an olive branch to the Republicans would be unlikely to soften their total opposition strategy and he’d provoke a rebellion amongst progressive Democrats.
The more interesting question is how general the pardon could be. Could it be for any and all offences against Federal law committed at any time prior to the pardon? Or would the pardon have to specify the crimes that are pardoned? It would be hilarious if Trump had to put together pages of bullet point crimes.
A pardon has no effect on civil cases. It does nothing to cancel any debts and it can’t stop E Jean Carroll’s defamation claim over Trump calling her a liar when she claimed in her autobiography that he raped her (penis into vagina).
A pardon also has no effect on criminal proceedings under State law. NY State is investigating Ivanka and the Trump Organisation over a dubious deduction claimed regarding a $750,000 payment to her for consultancy fees when she was an employee. This might be state tax evasion, falsifying business records etc.. No doubt realising that a pardon couldn’t save Daddy and/or her from prosecution, she complained bitterly over being harassed, poor thing ...
There’d be nothing stopping Trump from resigning to allow Pence to become President after which Pence could pardon Trump. After all, Gerald Ford pardoned Nixon over Watergate (which is also an example of a pre-emptive pardon before any charges had been laid). I doubt if Biden would be stupid enough to pardon Trump and his cronies. Such an olive branch to the Republicans would be unlikely to soften their total opposition strategy and he’d provoke a rebellion amongst progressive Democrats.
The more interesting question is how general the pardon could be. Could it be for any and all offences against Federal law committed at any time prior to the pardon? Or would the pardon have to specify the crimes that are pardoned? It would be hilarious if Trump had to put together pages of bullet point crimes.
A pardon has no effect on civil cases. It does nothing to cancel any debts and it can’t stop E Jean Carroll’s defamation claim over Trump calling her a liar when she claimed in her autobiography that he raped her (penis into vagina).
A pardon also has no effect on criminal proceedings under State law. NY State is investigating Ivanka and the Trump Organisation over a dubious deduction claimed regarding a $750,000 payment to her for consultancy fees when she was an employee. This might be state tax evasion, falsifying business records etc.. No doubt realising that a pardon couldn’t save Daddy and/or her from prosecution, she complained bitterly over being harassed, poor thing ...