The presidential pardon

Abstract

'There may be instances where, though a man offends against the letter of the law ... peculiar circumstances in his case may entitle him to mercy.' The Presidential Pardon, also known as the Prerogative of Mercy, is a right reserved to the Head of State to enable him to pardon or forgive a crime or contravention. In Malta, it is a residual power given to the President which was inherited from the British constitutional law: a power to grant mercy or pardon to those convicted of crimes against the crown. The President substitutes the Queen in exercising this power. It is an important right protected in the Maltese Constitution since Independence. The Presidential Pardon usurps the functions of the courts of criminal jurisdiction by subjecting their decisions to governmental review. Alexander Hamilton once said that one man appears to be a more eligible dispenser of the mercy of the government, than a body of men.