How to Find Records of State Pardons
A pardon is the forgiveness of a prison inmate granted by the head of state, which could be a governor or the president of the United States. Pardons are granted when the appropriate head of state determines that the inmate had appropriately fulfilled his debt to society, or if they declare that the person was wrongly convicted. Pardons are rare, and most inmates should expect not to receive one. According to ExpertLaw, inmates typically must complete their sentence, including parole or probation, before they can receive a pardon. The inmate's application for a pardon and the documented action by the state, whether it is denied or approved, is available for public inspection under state and federal Freedom of Information laws.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Find out if your state has an online prison inmate look-up function. Employees at the local county court house or district attorney's office should be well aware if the function is available, and you can also look on your state's Division of Prisons or Commission of Corrections website. The inmate look-up is a great tool if you know the name of the person you are researching. It should list the name, age, date of sentencing and scheduled release date, and whether she is still incarcerated, on parole or deceased, and whether she was pardoned.
-
2
Contact your state parole division. Parole listings are public record, though they may not be available online in every state. In many states, parole departments also handle pardons and clemency matters. The web page should have instructions for submitting a Freedom of Information request. Provide as many details as possible in your letter. If you are looking for a history or pardons in the state, provide a specific range of dates, ask for the full name of each person pardoned, and ask for an explanation or justification for each pardon, as it was officially noted by the head of state. Note whether you are seeking the applications for pardons, the state's responses, or both, or just a listing of pardons.
-
-
3
View the governor's office website for your state. Often this department puts out more press releases than any other state office. Search the news release archives for items about pardons, though in some situations pardons are political and the governor might not want to promote some of those actions. But if the governor approved and signed a pardon, that document if a public record. Follow the directions on that web page for submitting a Freedom of Information request for recent and past pardons.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Pardons are issued or denied at the state level, but most state inmates were convicted in a county criminal court. The courts may not have information as to whether a convicted defendant was pardoned, but court documents on the criminal case might contain some information that is not included in the state commission or corrections or parole records.
