BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Disgraced former congressman Chris Collins has been released from a federal prison in Pensacola, Florida after serving just two months of his 26-month sentence.
According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website, Collins was released Tuesday, the same day he received a full pardon from President Trump.
Trump also issued more than a dozen other pardons and commutations for several of his political allies Tuesday. Local political experts tell us outgoing presidents issuing pardons is not uncommon, but still controversial.
"There are often times instances where someone close to the president will receive a pardon," said Jacob Neiheisel, associate professor of political science at the University at Buffalo. "It often is something that's criticized but it's more or less the way that Trump goes about making these decisions that are really going to ramp up people."
Collins began serving his sentence in October after judges delayed it several times due to coronavirus concerns.
