Rauner works through clemency backlog

Posted on December 13, 2016
Bruce Rauner
Gov. Bruce Rauner has granted about 80 pardons since he took office in 2015. (Photo courtesy Facebook/Bruce Rauner)

By RFD Radio/WFMB

SPRINGFIELD – Gov. Bruce Rauner is plowing through clemency requests that he inherited from past administrations.

Rauner has now eliminated more than 2,000 requests but he’s less lenient than Gov. Pat Quinn was. Rauner’s review of 2,300 applications since 2015 have resulted in a pardon about three percent of the time and he’s granted three commutations. Previously, Quinn acted on more than 4,000 cases and Quinn granted pardons more than 25 percent of the time.

A pardon will can be sought after a person has finished serving a sentence and with a granted pardon the offender can go to court to have a conviction removed from a criminal record. A commutation will reduce or eliminate a current prison sentence.

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