Overview

• On May 28 President Trump granted full pardons to Florida diver Tanner Mansell and charter captain John Moore Jr. for their 2020 felony convictions.
• The pair were convicted of theft within special maritime jurisdiction after cutting a NOAA research longline off Jupiter Inlet and releasing 19 sharks.
• Their convictions had stripped them of voting rights, firearm ownership and the ability to travel internationally until the pardon restored those privileges.
• A U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruling led by Judge Barbara Lagoa criticized the prosecution as unwarranted and underscored judicial checks on legal overreach.
• Publicity from that appellate opinion and a Cato Institute article prompted a White House review that culminated in the clemency.