Who Deserves Mercy? State Pardons, Commutations, and Determinants of Clemency

• In Event: Race, Place, and Identity in State Politics and Policy

Abstract

Though nearly 1.5 million people were incarcerated in prisons and jails in 2019, the number of clemency petitions granted by the president or state governors remains exceedingly rare, in the dozens to hundreds. Political science has largely focused on presidential pardons, but this paper looks to the states for variation in pardoning practices and outcomes. I collect original data on the frequency and identity of recipients of clemency (pardons and commutations) in the states and analyze the determinants of these powers. Who is the most likely to receive mercy? I consider petitioner race, gender, and crime type independently and interacted with gubernatorial partisanship to illuminate patterns in clemency across the states. This paper provides essential insight into a rare but consequential practice, a matter of literal life and death for millions across the country.

Author

• Anna M Gunderson, Louisiana State University