What is the difference between and pardon and amnesty?

What is the difference between and pardon and amnesty? When someone has been prosecuted and convicted of a crime, if they want to remove the conviction, they must seek a pardon. In state court their are exceptions to this rule, like exungements for summary offenses, but in federal court, you must get a pardon to remove a conviction.

Amnesty is where a person or group of people are told that they will not be prosecuted for a particular offense if they comply with terms of the amnesty, or simply admit to their role in the alleged crime. For example, the government can say that on a certain day all citizens who possess illegal firearms can turn firearms in to a police station and they will not be prosecuted. The idea that people are possessing the illegal weapon, but the government agrees not to prosecute, is a form of amnesty.

Always remember, the state and federal governments are separate sovereigns, so you can be prosecuted in one court even if you are granted amnesty in another.

By Brian J. Zeiger