Trump Pardoned a Nursing Home Owner Who Owed Almost $19 Million to a Grieving Family

President Donald Trump pardoned New Jersey businessman Joseph Schwartz in February 2025 in a federal case where Schwartz admitted to withholding $39 million in employee payroll taxes. This pardon came nine years after Doris Coulson died in a nursing home owned by Schwartz, where staff served her solid food despite instructions, leading to her death. The Coulson family sued Schwartz and his company for wrongful death, and a judge awarded Amanda Coulson and her siblings nearly $19 million, which Schwartz never paid. The White House stated Schwartz was "an example of over prosecution" and cited a third-party entity managing tax filings. After the pardon, Schwartz still had to return to Arkansas in late December to serve nine months for defrauding the state’s Medicaid program, but was released by the parole board within three weeks.