Pardons have reportedly eliminated $113m that would have supported a victims’ fund. I’m advancing legislation to create accountability

Donald Trump’s aggressive use of the presidential pardon power isn’t just controversial – it’s also stripping resources from victims of violent crime.

According to new reporting from the Trace, shared with the Guardian, the 117 pardons issued in Trump’s second term have erased at least $113m in fines and penalties that would otherwise have supported a fund for violent crime victims, along with domestic violence shelters, rape crisis centers and child abuse treatment programs. Those programs are now being forced to do more with less.

Johnny Olszewski is a first-term Democratic congressman who represents Maryland’s second district after serving in the Maryland state legislature and as Baltimore county executive