On Wednesday, the White House announced in a press release that President Barack Obama granted clemency, consisting of eight commutations and 12 pardons, to 20 prisoners,

The president commuted the sentences of eight federal drug defendants, including four who were on Death Row, as part of a new initiative to reduce harsh sentences for non-violent crimes.

In a statement, Deputy Attorney General James Cole said the eight people granted commutations were "sentenced under outdated and unfair laws." He added that they each met the criteria of a new clemency initiative announced earlier this year to decrease lengthy sentences for non-violent drug offenders and, ultimately, shrink the country's growing mass incarceration rate.

"... their punishments did not fit their crimes, and sentencing laws and policies have since been updated to ensure more fairness for low-level offenders," Cole said. "All eight of these individuals meet the criteria I laid out under the president's direction when I announced the Clemency Initiative in April."

Cole described the individuals as "non-violent, low-level offenders who have no significant criminal history nor ties to gangs or organized crime." He added all have spent at least a decade behind bars and maintained good reputations.

The individuals are set to be released in 2015.

A dozen pardons were also given mainly to people who had served out their sentences and were convicted on a variety of mostly minor offenses. This includes wire fraud, "working a distillery on which the required sign is not placed" and the "manufacture of marijuana," reports the Washington Post. Other charges include violating the Archaeological Resources Protection Act.

Altogether, Obama has commuted the sentences of 18 people, topping both President Ronald Reagan and President George W. Bush.

Still, the eight commutations are a mere drop in the bucket compared to the hundreds of thousands prisoners currently serving time behind bars for low-level offenses.

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