Bevin issues flurry of pardons in his final weeks as Kentucky governor
In four days last week, Gov. Matt Bevin signed a flurry of executive orders pardoning at least 28 Kentuckians of a range of crimes — from sodomy and sexual abuse to trafficking of marijuana.
It is common for governors to issue pardons toward the end of their term. In 2015, as former Gov. Steve Beshear was leaving office, he issued 197 pardons and commuted the sentences of six people. Former Gov. Ernie Fletcher pardoned 100 people during his four-year term.
Bevin’s office did not respond when asked how many requests for pardons his office has received and how many he might issue.
Bevin has issued 70 pardons since taking office in December 2015, including pardons for five women who had their sentences commuted by former Gov. Beshear because they murdered their abuser.
The majority of Bevin’s pardons are for people convicted of drug crimes, such as trafficking controlled substances or, in one case, manufacturing methamphetamine. In many of his pardons, Bevin says the person in question has turned their life around and is now leading an exemplary life.
In his pardon of Matthew Ryan Cleveland, who was convicted of a series of alcohol related crimes between 2007 and 2010 (including some convictions in Fayette County), Bevin called the time “a series of troubled years.”
“Matthew Cleveland has clearly turned his life around,” Bevin wrote. “His strong work ethic and service to his family, church and community are an example for others to follow.”
Some of Bevin’s pardons have stirred controversy. On Friday, Bevin pardoned a Jefferson County man, Paul Donel Hurt, who had been convicted on three counts of sodomy and sexual assault against his six-year-old step-daughter in 1999.
The original judge in the case, Stephen Mershon, started corresponding with Hurt after Mershon retired and soon became convinced Hurt was innocent, according to a ruling by the Kentucky Court of Appeals. Mershon then contacted the victim and helped her write a letter to Steve Beshear seeking a pardon or commutation of the sentence.
Beshear declined to pardon Hurt or commute his sentence and the Court of Appeals rejected Hurt’s motion to set aside the conviction.
Bevin, though, wrote that it appeared to him that Hurt was wrongly convicted and that it was his “moral duty” to pardon Hurt and commute the rest of his sentence.
“In light of all that is known and all that will forever remain unknown, it does not seem possible that justice can truly be served in this instance,” Bevin wrote.
Adding fuel to the controversy is the fact that Bevin’s chief-of-staff, Blake Brickman, claimed he fired a staff member in Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton’s office, in part, because she advocated for Bevin to commute the sentence of someone who was convicted of raping his own step-daughter. Bevin’s spokeswoman, Elizabeth Kuhn, said the two cases are unrelated.
After someone in Kentucky is convicted of a felony they lose the ability to vote. Gov.-elect Andy Beshear promised to restore voting rights to thousands of non-violent felons during his campaign, after Bevin rescinded former Gov. Steve Beshear’s attempt to do the same.
Bevin argued a constitutional amendment is needed to automatically restore voting rights for felons who have completed their sentences.
