Monday, November 24, 2008
Pardon Prospects [Mark Krikorian]
Slate's look at possible pardons by the outgoing administration gives good odds for a pardon of the two Border Patrol agents — Nacho Ramos and Jose Compean — serving 11- and 12-year terms, respectively, for shooting a drug smuggler in the butt in 2005 (the criminal was subsequently arrested smuggling drugs while waiting to testify against the agents and is serving a nine-year sentence in federal prison). If President Bush doesn't end up pardoning the agents (or at least commuting their sentences), he'd present Obama with a golden opportunity to build up more political capital, and short-circuit populist opposition, by springing these men from prison on his first day in office.
11/24 09:25 PM
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