Delayed Gratification Describes Length of Time It Takes to Obtain a Clemency Decision in Illinois
Key Takeaways:
Governor Pritzker’s Current Pace: Only 4 pardons granted as of May 1, 2026.
The Election Factor: Clemency decisions often slow down during a gubernatorial rematch.
Action Item: If you are seeking a pardon for a felony in Illinois, do not expect a chronological response. Specialized legal guidance is required to manage the Prisoner Review Board (PRB) process during these delays.
For the past 14 years, several times a year I request clemency data from the Illinois Prisoner Review Board (PRB). I enjoy sifting through the data. In past years, I described this process as reading the tea leaves.
As Governor J.B. Pritzker concludes the final year of his second term in office, there haven’t been many tea leaves to read over the past several years.
Nowadays, I spend a lot of time managing the expectations of clients seeking clemency. There is no way to estimate how long the process will take once a petition has been filed. Currently, I have clemency petitions (pardon requests) pending since 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2025.
Clemency Data for 2026
Since the beginning of this year, Gov. Pritzker has granted a total of four pardons. As of May 1, no petitions (pardons or sentence commutations) have been denied. This being an election year – Gov. Pritzker is running for a third term in a rematch against Republican candidate Darren Bailey – it is doubtful that ruling on clemency petitions will be high on the governor’s to-do list.
Given the limited number of grants so far this year, there’s not much information I can extract from the data. Here is what I can report:
All of the petitioners received pardons for drug offenses. All but one of the petitioners sought clemency for multiple drug offenses. All but one of the petitioners spent time in prison. Perhaps, the most notable takeaway is that each petitioner likely filed his clemency petition sometime between October 2024 and now. It is no secret that Gov. Pritzker does not rule on clemency petitions in the order they are received by the PRB.
I don’t know how governors Pat Quinn and Bruce Rauner ruled on clemency petitions – whether in order of receipt or by some other method. But it has been apparent for some time that Gov. Pritzker does not rule on petitions in chronological order of receipt.
The Act Clemency as Political Tool
Since President Trump’s return to office in 2025, there’s been a lot of press coverage on how he’s used his pardon authority.
Much of the coverage has been negative due to the fact President Trump has chosen to use this authority to reward his diehard supporters (Jan. 11 defendants) or those with the financial means to pay a bribe. In short, President Trump has desecrated what it means to be pardon worthy.
Previously, I’ve opined that it is regrettable Illinois adopted a clemency model that relies solely on the governor to decide whether someone receives a pardon or sentence commutation.
In states that give the power to grant clemency to a dedicated review board (that may include the governor), the process is far more robust – with hundreds of clemency decisions being issued each year. Additionally, the board model eliminates the political cost some governors have faced because of a clemency decision they’ve made (e.g., Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis).
Despite my frustration with the length of the process, for some people clemency remains their only second-chance remedy even after the 2017 expansion of the sealing eligibility rules. As such, I continue to pray that Gov. Pritzker will find time in his busy schedule to give these men and women a chance to get on with their lives.