Clemency

Notable Grants of Clemency

Since 1976, there have been eight broad or blanket grants of clemency to death row prisoners:

  • Gov. Kate Brown in Oregon in 2022 (all death-row prisoners).
  • Gov. Jared Polis in Colorado in 2020 (all death-row prisoners).
  • Gov. Martin O’Malley in Maryland in 2015 (all death-row prisoners).
  • Gov. Pat Quinn in Illinois in 2011 (all death-row pris­on­ers), just before sign­ing bill repeal­ing death penalty.
  • Gov. Jon Corzine (pic­tured) in New Jersey in 2007 (all death-row pris­on­ers), just before sign­ing bill repeal­ing death penalty.
  • Gov. George Ryan in Illinois in 2003 (all death-row prisoners).
  • Gov. Richard Celeste in Ohio in 1991 (8 death-row prisoners).
  • Gov. Toney Anaya in New Mexico in 1986 (all death-row prisoners).

There were six notable grants of broad clemency prior to the reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976:

  • Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller (pic­tured) com­mut­ed all death sen­tences in Arkansas in 1971. 
  • Gov. Frank Clement com­mut­ed all the death sen­tences in Tennessee in 1965, after the leg­is­la­ture defeat­ed an abo­li­tion bill by a single vote. 
  • Gov. Endicott ​“Chub” Peabody of Massachusetts com­mut­ed every death sen­tence (1962 – 1964). 
  • Gov. Robert D. Holmes of Oregon com­mut­ed every death sen­tence that arose dur­ing his term (1957 – 1959). 
  • Gov. Mark Hatfield of Oregon com­mut­ed every death sen­tence after the death penal­ty was abol­ished by state ref­er­en­dum in 1964. 
  • Gov. Lee Cruce of Oklahoma com­mut­ed every death sen­tence imposed dur­ing his admin­is­tra­tion (1911 – 1915).