Lack of Transparency Makes Guess Work of Computing Gov. Pritzker Clemency Grant Rates

Long gone are the days when it used to be easy to obtain Illinois clemency[1] grant and denial information, setting forth the criminal offense, county of arrest, and case year of every petition (pardon or commutation) ruled on by the governor.

Due to the way clemency information is now “packaged,” I can no longer provide verifiable data on the number of clemency petitions (pardon v. commutation) filed, granted or denied. Why? The Illinois Prisoner Review Board (PRB), the administrative arm of the clemency process, no longer provides detailed information pertaining to clemency denials.

In an effort to determine if a clemency denial is a pardon or commutation, I’ve taken to running each petitioner’s name through the Illinois Department of Correction’s (IDOC) inmate finder search engine. It is a tedious and laborious process that inevitably involves some educated guesswork on my part.

If the petitioner is not in IDOC custody, I count that person as a pardon denial. Due to the inherent limitations of the data currently available, the following grant/denial information should be viewed through that prism.

Gov. Pritzker’s Clemency Decisions Not Headline Worthy

From January 1 through August 19, 2023, Gov. Pritzker issued 531 clemency decisions. The majority of these petitions (413) were sentence commutation requests. Only eight sentence commutations were issued -- a 1.9% grant rate. During the same period, Gov. Pritzker pardoned 24 men and women – a 20% grant rate.

In all but one case (domestic battery), the pardoned offenses were sealable (e.g., drug possession or manufacture/delivery, forgery, theft) – a pattern previously observed for this governor. Five pardons were for “forcible felonies” (e.g., aggravated battery, residential burglary, burglary). No pardoned petitioner had their gun rights reinstated. Of the eight sentences commuted this year, six were for murder.   

The Inexact Science of Determining Whether Someone Will Receive Clemency

Because Illinois has no informal or formal clemency eligibility rules, I’ve found it useful to analyze how governors wield their clemency powers. I believe such information can provide a small window into assessing someone’s odds of receiving clemency (and its associated forms of relief).

Since 2012, I’ve reviewed the clemency decisions of three Illinois governors: Pat Quinn, Bruce Rauner, and J.B. Pritzker. By the end of their terms in office, Quinn and Rauner were, respectively (and dependably), pro and con clemency. Gov. Pritzker has been less consistent. The only constant has been his refusal to reinstate gun rights (except for those petitioners seeking a full pardon for immigration purposes).      

After years of pouring over pardon data, I know that certain offenses aren’t likely to receive clemency: 1) sex offense,[1] 2) crimes of violence that are not at least 10 years old (an important factor in Cook County cases), and 3) cases where the state prosecutor’s office files an objection (due to the crime or age of the case).

As a general rule, sentence commutation grants have been few and far between. Of the three governors, Gov. Pritzker has shown the most willingness to commute prison sentences. That said, his commutation grants peaked in 2020-2021 and have declined since.

If someone is serving a life sentence or only served a few years of their sentence, odds are they won’t receive a sentence commutation. No one convicted of a sex offense has ever received a sentence commutation. DUI convictions resulting in the loss of life (where sentences range from 6-12 years and are serve 85% of total) are also routinely denied. 

Closing Thoughts on Pardons

Seeking a pardon is like baking a cake from scratch. Unlike a cake mix, where few ingredients need adding, there are several ingredients (factors) that go into “making” this decision.

Aside from the nature of the offense, other factors include: 1) petitioner’s overall arrest/conviction record, 2) county where the offense occurred, 3) age of the case, 4) why a petitioner is seeking a pardon (particularly where the offense is sealable), and 5) why petitioner “needs” pardon relief.

Even when you believe someone’s clemency odds are good, due to the number of unknown “cooks” in the kitchen, sometimes the process can feel like a crapshoot.

Even though Gov. Pritzker alone makes the final decision, he (like previous governors) relies on other personnel to assist him in reviewing the petitions. Along with the PRB, his staff submits their recommendations on whether a petition should be granted.

Because the clemency process is not transparent – you can’t FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) the governor or PRB -- petitioners never learn why (or why not) they receive clemency.  

[1] Clemency consists of two forms of relief: 1) a pardon (seeking relief from a past criminal conviction/sentence), or 2) a sentence commutation (seeking relief by way of a sentence reduction or immediate release from prison). Under Illinois law, only the governor has the power to grant or deny a request for clemency.   

[2]  To date, none of the governors discussed ever pardoned someone for a sex offense.