Breaking Leather News: Goodnight Huckabee

[mick e]

This Washington State cop killer was granted clemency by Huckleberry and got a "get out of jail free" card.

OOPS!

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/11/30/wash...index.html
http://rawstory.com/2009/11/police-slain...orce-base/

This situation makes Willie Horton look like an episode of Mister Rogers Neighborhood.

[$tevie]

Please don't misconstrue this as my not caring about the officers, because I think this is an absolute tragedy. At the risk of seeming glib, I do feel compelled to point out that Huckabee's record on clemency has already bitten him in the a$$. He's got no future in politics after this.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,316312,00.html

[mick e]

"Should [Clemmons] be found responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington state," Huckabee's office said in a statement Sunday night.

Way to man-up and accept some responsibility, TUBBO.

[cbelt3]

OMG, can we PLEASE DO NOT LET THE DM BUGHOUSE CRAZY INFECTION COME HERE ??? PLEASE ????

[Mac1337]

$tevie wrote:
Please don't misconstrue this as my not caring about the officers, because I think this is an absolute tragedy. At the risk of seeming glib, I do feel compelled to point out that Huckabee's record on clemency has already bitten him in the a$$. He's got no future in politics after this.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,316312,00.html

So the Willie Horton ad was fair game after all.

[OWC Jamie]

faux outrage du jour

[$tevie]

If my perception is that the public will be repulsed by Huckabee, that's a perception about the public and about Huckabee, not a statement of morality. This is what renders you so confused when the grown-ups are having a conversation.

[mick e]

The families of the four officers who are dead will be glad to hear that billb considers this story "faux outrage".

[Gutenberg]

The ONLY thing the governor has on his desk to consider in granting clemency is staff and parole commission reports. The governor does not personally go down to the prison and befriend the convicts. There are no interviews.

Someone he trusted recommended to Huckabee that he give Clemmons a break and Huckabee took a look at Clemmons' age and, I am sure, reflected on the waste of a long life behind bars. I think it speaks well of Huckabee.

As for his "mistakes were made" statement this weekend, that's a different story.

[$tevie]

Well, people seemed to have been questioning Huckabee's clemency policy for some time.
http://www.arkansasleader.com/frontstori...abee8.html

My understanding is that there was some discussion as to whether Clemmons was too crazy to go free. If that discussion did not reach Huckabee it begs the question as to why staff and parole commission reports wouldn't even mention it. Rather frightening oversight.