Mississippi judge Tomie Green issued a temporary injunction blocking the release of 21 of the 208 inmates granted pardons by former Mississippi Republican Governor Haley Barbour, CNN reports.
Mr. Barbour issued the pardons for the inmates, some of whom were convicted murderers, on Tuesday as his last act prior to leaving office. The popular two term governor could not seek re-election due to Mississippi’s term limits, in a statement Wednesday he said people have misunderstood why he issued the pardons.
“The pardons were intended to allow them to find gainful employment or acquire professional licenses as well as hunt and vote. My decision about clemency was based upon the recommendation of the Parole Board in more than 90 percent of the cases,” said Mr. Barbour.
According to Mr. Barbour, 189 of the inmates had already served their full sentences and others were receiving suspended sentences regarding their medical conditions.
Judge Green issued the injunction Wednesday for the 21 inmates because the Mississippi state constitution requires pardon requests for eligible inmates to be published 30 days prior to the date that they are granted the pardon.
A hearing date for those inmates has been set for January 23rd.
Mr. Green, a Hinds County circuit court judge, also ruled that any inmates released in the future must meet the 30 day requirement.
The Associated Press is reporting that only 5 of the 208 inmates issued pardons by Mr. Barbour have been released, all were released over the weekend. All of those inmates were former trustee workers at the Governor’s Mansion while Mr. Barbour was still the governor.
The issuance of so many pardons on his last day in office by Mr. Barbour have angered many state public officials in Mississippi, including their Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood, who told CNN “Gov. Barbour should be ashamed.”
Mr. Barbour will now likely return to the Washington D.C. based bipartisan lobbying firm BGR that he co-founded in 1991.
