Trials
BREAKING
Evers Commutes 14 Wisconsin Sentences
Gov. Tony Evers on Friday commuted the sentences of 14 people in Wisconsin prisons, the first time a Wisconsin governor has used that power since 1995. The grants do not themselves release anyone, and he turned down 10 other applications.
By Crime Talk Network Staff Writer ·
A commutation changes a punishment a court already imposed. It is not a pardon, and it is not a new trial. Some of these 14 people still have years left to serve, or only an earlier date on which they may ask for parole.
Evers' office announced the 14 commutations Friday afternoon. No Wisconsin governor had granted one since Tommy Thompson in 1995. The state constitution lets a governor cut time in prison or on supervision, and for decades governors in both parties left that power unused.
A Commutation Advisory Board that Evers created this year recommended all 14. The board held public hearings for 24 people on Aug. 21 and Sept. 18, and he denied the other 10. The convictions run from burglary and armed robbery to first-degree intentional homicide. More than half a dozen of the 14 were teenagers when the crimes were committed. Sexual assault and child abuse were not eligible, and an applicant had to have served at least half of the confinement term, or at least 20 years of a life sentence.
A commutation can shorten a term or move up the date a person may seek parole or extended supervision. It does not require the state to open the door. Evers leaves office in January.
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