It is heroic to set someone free.
Joe is the President of the United States, and he just received a letter from someone who's been in prison for 2 years for possession of marijuana.
Joe wants to lessen the punishment for the inmate.
Joe completely pardons the man in prison so that he can get to go home early.
Joe decreases the inmate's prison term by 3 months.
The person gets to live a free life and doesn't have to be punished for his mistakes anymore.
The inmate still has to spend a lot of time in prison, and the 3 months won't make a big difference.