Joe Exotic's lawyer thinks he's 'very, very close' to getting a presidential pardon from Trump

• The lawyer for "Tiger King" star Joe Exotic says he is "very, very close" to getting a presidential pardon from President Donald Trump.
• Exotic, real name Joseph Maldano-Passage, is serving 22 years in prison after being convicted of crimes including two counts of murder-for-hire.
• "We are waiting on the pen to hit the paper," attorney Eric Love told ABC News on Tuesday.
• Presidential pardons overturn existing, or prevent future, federal convictions. Most recently, Trump pardoned his former national security advisor Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI in 2017.
• Maldano-Passage became famous after his exploits as a zookeeper were documented in the 2020 Netflix series "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness."

The lawyer for Joe Exotic, the star of Netflix's "Tiger King," said he believes his client is "very, very close" to getting a presidential pardon from President Donald Trump, ABC News reported.

As his first term winds to a close, Trump is reportedly fielding requests and advice — from people including family members and TV hosts — on how to use his pardoning powers to overturn existing, and prevent future, federal convictions.

One of those people is Joseph Maldano-Passage, the zoo owner known as Joe Exotic, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison in January after being found guilty of two counts of murder for hire and 17 counts of animal abuse.

His zookeeping and legal troubles became famous after Netflix released its popular series "Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness" in March.

But Eric Love, Maldano-Passage's lawyer, said he's confident that the sentence will be moot after Trump pardons his client.

"We are waiting on the pen to hit the paper," Love, told ABC News on Tuesday. "We think we are very, very close."

In April 2020, a White House reporter asked Trump whether he'd consider a pardon for Maldonado-Passage.

"I'll take a look," Trump replied, adding: "I know nothing about it. He has 22 years, for what? What did he do?"

Like other presidents, Trump has granted pardons to a series of people who have been convicted of crimes or awaiting sentencing. During his administration Trump has given pardons to former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio and the suffragist Susan B. Anthony, among others.

Since his election loss in early November, Trump has pardoned one person: His first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, on November 27. In December 2017 Flynn had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his communications with Russia.

In a stunt apparently intended to catch Trump's eye, representatives for Maldonado-Passage recently ran up a $10,000 tab at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC, The New York Times reported.

Maldano-Passage was accused of trying to hire people to murder Carole Baskin, a wildlife conservationist who had been trying to shut down his business.

Maldano-Passage pleaded not guilty.

According to The New York Times and NBC News, Trump has in recent weeks talked about pardoning his lawyer Rudy Giuliani; his elder children Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump; his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and even himself.

On November 25, Trump retweeted a post from GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz which said: "President Trump should pardon Flynn, the Thanksgiving turkey, and everyone from himself, to his admin, to Joe Exotic if he has to."

Trump's last day in office is January 20, 2021.

• Read more:
• Yes, Trump can pardon himself — but it's a risky move that won't protect him from all prosecutions he could face
• Trump is said to have discussed pardoning his 3 eldest children, Jared Kushner, and Rudy Giuliani