Juan Orlando Hernández

Juan Orlando Hernández, the former president of Honduras, walked out of a federal prison in West Virginia on Monday after receiving a pardon from United States President Donald Trump, according to official inmate records. His release came less than two years into a forty five year sentence for narcotics conspiracy and weapons offences.

The Trump pardon has immediately reshaped Honduran political debate and added new tension to an already razor thin presidential contest at home, where candidates are separated by only a few hundred votes. The move has also revived long standing questions about Hernández’s legacy and Washington’s approach …