President Trump’s recent pardons are preventing victims from recovering money. The March pardon of Trevor Milton came before restitution could be ordered, likely blocking up to $680 million for Nikola investors. Reporting shows at least 20 clemency recipients this year had financial penalties forgiven, totaling tens of millions. Critics say shifts in DOJ enforcement priorities and opaque pardon decisions are reducing accountability and leaving victims without recourse.
Trump’s Pardons Are Blocking Victims’ Restitution — And Leaving Real People Worse Off
Trump’s pardon spree is doing real harm to real people
President Donald Trump’s recent use of clemency has produced consequences that reach beyond headlines and political debate: tangible losses for victims who relied on the justice system to recover money stolen or squandered through criminal conduct.
One of the clearest examples is Trevor Milton, the former Nikola CEO convicted of fraud in 2022. In March, Trump pardoned Milton before a judge could enter an order for restitution — the formal court-directed repayment intended to compensate defrauded investors. Prosecutors had sought roughly $680 million in restitution, and the pardon effectively removed the legal path those investors had to recover their losses.
Fiscal Forgiveness With Real Victims
Reporting by The Washington Post placed Milton’s case in a broader pattern: at least 20 people who received clemency from Trump this year — whether shortened sentences, restored civil rights, or avoidance of prison — were also relieved of financial penalties totaling tens of millions of dollars. In other words, pardons that spare prison time have also erased or prevented civil- or criminally-ordered compensation for harmed parties.
Shifting Enforcement Priorities
At the same time, Department of Justice guidance from the Criminal Division in May urged prosecutors to avoid "overbroad" corporate and white-collar enforcement that could burden U.S. businesses and stifle innovation. That guidance, along with a broader administration emphasis on transnational crime and other priorities, has coincided with a reduced focus on aggressive white-collar prosecutions — a shift critics say lowers the likelihood that investors and consumers will see accountability or restitution.
Lack Of Transparency And Questionable Motives
Compounding the concern is opaque decision-making around why clemencies are granted. The Constitution places few limits on presidential pardons, which makes transparency all the more important to prevent favoritism or corruption. Trump has used his pardon power broadly this term, including clemency for more than 1,000 people charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot.
When asked about Trevor Milton, the president said an unnamed group told him Milton had been treated unfairly and added: "They say the thing that he did wrong was he was one of the first people that supported a gentleman named Donald Trump for president. He supported Trump. He liked Trump."
The Washington Post reported that Milton made roughly $2.5 million in large donations ahead of the 2024 cycle — including about $920,000 to the Trump 47 Committee and $750,000 to the MAHA Alliance PAC linked to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — far larger contributions than in previous cycles. Milton denied requesting special treatment but posted after the pardon that Trump had called to say clemency was coming.
Who Gets Hurt?
There will be no condolence call for the Nikola investors who lost money after relying on Milton’s representations. While the pardon power is an essential constitutional tool to correct miscarriages of justice, these recent uses are not presented as corrections of legal error or cases of extraordinary mercy. Instead, they are blocking restitution and shielding individuals from financial accountability — with direct, measurable harm to ordinary victims.
The pattern of fiscal forgiveness, a deprioritization of white-collar enforcement, and limited transparency about the rationale for clemency turns abstract concerns about abuse of power into concrete losses for people seeking compensation.
