Kelly granted clemency to eight Kansans. Hundreds of applications remain on her desk
When Gov. Laura Kelly announced Thursday she had granted clemency to eight Kansans, Cynthia Crawford started crying, certain her brother would finally be released.
Sherman Wright is 33 years into a 69-year sentence for burglary and robbery that under today’s laws would have carried about 10 to 15 years in prison.
His application for clemency has been on Kelly’s desk since March 2020. Crawford is adamant that the 56-year-old man incarcerated at Lansing Correctional Facility bears little resemblance to the “careless” 23-year-old who committed his crimes.
But when she scanned the list of commutations and pardons, Crawford was heartbroken to see Wright’s name missing.
“He hasn’t had a life in so long,” Crawford said. “He’s just turned his whole self around. He’s a man now. He was just a child then.”
Kelly used her clemency power for the first time since taking office Thursday, issuing five commutations and three pardons to former offenders.
It was an unusual display of executive power for a governor of Kansas, where clemency is offered sparingly and typically only at the very end of a term in office.
But advocates are already pushing for Kelly to do more and see her action Thursday as a hopeful sign. She has been sent 206 clemency applications since the beginning of 2020, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.
She has given no public indication that she plans additional grants.
“Governor Kelly does not take using clemency power lightly. The Governor will continue to review applications through this process,” Reeves Oyster, a spokeswoman for Kelly, said in an email.
Sharon Brett, Legal Director for the ACLU of Kansas, which has filed applications on behalf of 108 offenders, said she’s been told Kelly would like to continue granting clemency. She finds Kelly’s willingness to act with a tough 2022 re-election campaign looming — a FiveThirtyEight analysis in May ranked her as the most vulnerable incumbent Democratic governor nationwide — encouraging.
“We recognize that this is really stepping out on a limb for Gov. Kelly,” Brett said.
“Our hope for Gov. Kelly is that this is sort of a steady stream and Kelly sees how successful this is or can be and can do it more or do it for more people.”
Among those granted clemency was Dominic Holder, a 28-year-old man sentenced to 8 years in prison in 2018 on marijuana charges.
Holder’s appellate attorney, James Latta, said Holder’s sentence was unjust and that he deserved probation but state guidelines mandated 8 years in prison. Holder’s co-defendant was sentenced to community corrections after taking a plea deal, but Holder maintained through his sentencing that he was innocent.
“While we’re really happy for this clemency. There’s many, many more who have succumbed to these drug offenses the way they’re mandated by the legislature to be high sentencing, even for people with a first offense,” Latta said. “We’re hopeful that Gov. Kelly will step in for more of these similar situations.”
Despite her disappointment, Crawford also saw Kelly’s announcement as a moment of hope.
In the time Wright has been in prison, Crawford said, he has missed the death of their parents and sister. Wright and Crawford both caught COVID-19. Crawford spent days in an intensive care unit.
Wright, who has been slowed by arthritis and asthma, has spent his time learning new skills, training service dogs and mentoring younger inmates. Crawford said she’s hopeful he’ll be given a second chance and be able to pursue the cooking and mentoring career he’s talked about behind bars.
“When I first seen (the announcement) my heart was full of joy because at least she was attending to the cases,” Crawford said. “That’s a start.”
This story was originally published June 28, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
