Posted on 11/29/2009 9:43:52 PM PST by AKSurprise
SEATTLE The man police are seeking as a person of interest in the shooting deaths of four Lakewood, Wash. police officers was supposed to be spending the rest of his life in an Arkansas prison.
But, Maurice Clemmons, 37, who has a criminal history complete with violent, psychotic outbursts, was set free by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Killed Sunday morning in what detectives call an "ambush" at a coffee shop were Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39; Ronald Owens, 37; Tina Griswold, 40; and Greg Richards 42.
In 1989, Clemmons, then 17, was convicted in Little Rock for aggravated robbery. He was paroled in 2000 after Huckabee commuted Clemmons' 95- year prison sentence. Huckabee, who was criticized during his run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 for the number of clemencies and commutations he granted, cited Clemmons' age at the time of the sentence.
"Back then, Gov. Huckabee granted clemency to a disturbing number of people, including a man named Maurice Clemmons who should have never been left out," said Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County.
(Excerpt) Read more at m.king5.com ...
Oops.
Let Em Free Huckabee
Oh, boy. We have another Willie Horton on our hands, and not my boyhood hero who played for the Detroit Tigers.
That old Compassion gets them every time.
Nice going guv.
Huck, you just been “Hortonized”.
Sweet! The Huckster just ended his political future!!
Huckabees mealy-mouthed political class excuses show no accountability and are more of a Bart Simpson impression of a leftist; I didn’t do it, no one saw me do it, there’s no way you can prove anything! I pray hes presidential dead meat; and dubbed Mike The Huckster Huckabee, known for selling of shoddy goods and things you dont need. Further, the only thing he is big on is selling himself.
Hopefully Huckabee considers the deaths worth the cost of making himself feel better.
Has there been anything on why the investigation’s focused on that guy, and what connection he may have had to those poor cops?
This is so bad. What a jerk.
“Back then, Gov. Huckabee granted clemency to a disturbing number of people...”
Yep, and many went on to fulfill their destinies...way to go Huck!
Now, Clemmons is a suspect. He’s facing charges in Pierce County for child rape, assaulting several deputies and malicious mischief. Court papers refer to him as saying he was the messiah and that he could fly. A relative said “Maurice is not in his right mind.”
Clemmons was released from prison six days ago on bond, even though there is a warrant for his arrest after escaping from parole in Arkansas.
More proof that politicians really don’t give a damn about law abiding, tax paying folks. I can’t believe Fox ever hired this idiot, but now would be a good time to fire him!
Yup. He’s out of the running.
Any telegenic, evangelical, ex-governor’s around????
There may be an hour show available on Fox. Possible candidate could be female.
JimRob posted a vanity a few days ago stating that FR does not support RINO’s and limo-Republicans.
This is a perfect example of why we do not and should not.
It is sheer PC idiocy to let hardened criminals roam our streets.
And Huckleberry Hound comes across as one of those PC Christians that believes if you just turn them loose, build them a house, and give them what they want that they’ll suddenly start loving those they enjoy attacking.
Law and order. Preservation of innocent life. Private property. Freedom. Defense. Civil liberties. Defense and preservation of American culture.
These are the bedrock issues. We abandon them at our own peril.
Mike Huckabee’s political career is OVER!!!
Now he can write another book next year “A Simple Little Clemency Hearing”
Maybe, hopefully, it will mean an end to his boorish show on Fox News.
At the end of this reportinstead at the beginning where it should beit states that the original commutation was made on the basis of recommendations to Gov. Huckabee.
All governors make many commutations on the basis of recommendations. Whether there were meaningful contrary recommendations in this instance that were ignored remains to be seen.
We'd allow it if a liberal governor did it, and conservatives ought to know about this.
I see all the Romney-ites are out in force on this one. Too obvious.
The statement so far on Huck’s site:
He was recommended for and received a commutation of his original sentence from 1990, making him parole eligible and was paroled by the parole board once they determined he met the conditions at that time. He was arrested later for parole violation and taken back to prison to serve his full term, but prosecutors dropped the charges that would have held him. It appears that he has continued to have a string of criminal and psychotic behavior but was not kept incarcerated by either state.
For once I’m going to enjoy watching a Republican get savaged inside the liberal media shark tank.
And this from the Seattle Times:
Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing this morning of four Lakewood police officers, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.
Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.
Clemmons’ criminal history includes at least five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington. The record also stands out for the number of times he has been released from custody despite questions about the danger he posed.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010385617_webmansought29.html
Huckaphony is so done. But there is also some blame to share by someone in Washington State who kept letting this guy walk.
This is the kind of thing you expect some bleeding heart liberal to say....
Oh, never mind.
Dude...Wouldn’t you rather have live cops and beat Huck the old fashioned way?
Huckabee’s cooked. We’ll see to that.
Odd that you would take an obviously one-sided and incomplete report from one of the liberal mediaSeattle Timesto be the ultimate truth. This report, at least from what you have presented, totally lacks Gov. Huckabee’s response.
My surprise is that so many on this thread are so hot to digest these half-ass reports.
Perhaps, but there’s a reason the sign on TRuman’s dexk read “The buck stops here.”
Bah humbug. This same kind of stuff was said during the primary season, and he still came in second behind McCain and ahead of Romney.
Of course, but that can’t happen now, anyway. However, it is now possible to help show many of his supporters just how wrong The Huckster is in so many ways.
He”s a thorn in the side of conservatism, as he claims, with no proof, to be one.
At least this error in judgment may not be duplicated soon by other governors.
Governors give commutations all the time. I’m sure you could look through the records of all present and past governors and find commutations that were made for criminals who re-offended.
The real problem is in the current justice system, which needs a complete overhaul.
Who’s the other guy you show on Huck’s side?
It’s never his fault, Glen Green, Wayne Dumond, now this Clemmons guy. But please feel free to believe everything you read on Huckabee’s site. I hope no one he’s ever helped set free never comes after you or your family members. As you can see the criminals don’t tend to stay in Arkansas. Dumond’s victim was in Missouri, and the policemen were in Washington, not to mention the child that was raped in Washington. There are plenty more of them out there, criminals waiting for an opportunity.
The buck stops with Huck. He’s the one responsible. Common sense would’ve and should’ve told him not to let a dangerous criminal like that back out onto the streets. Not all governors pull crap like that. Romney didn’t pardon anyone. Bet he sleeps better at night than Huck. If Huck still tries to harm this country even further by running for the White House again, he’ll have to wear two pairs of overlapping gloves on his hands just to cover up all the blood that will NEVER WASH OFF.
This is not just a political story about another stupid governor in Arkansas. This is a human story about a fat dirtbag who trusted a violent pig more than he trusted all the innocent law-abiding citizens and police officers out there just trying to live their lives. As far as American politicians go, Huck is as dangerous as they come with his wacko religious-left ideology.
“I cant believe Fox ever hired this idiot, but now would be a good time to fire him!”
Agreed, besides he’s boring and he sucks up to libs on his show. I can see lib butt kissing anywhere. I would like to see Michelle Malkin or Laura Ingram have that time slot.
You're darn tootin' about that.
From the little bit I've read, this guy has nowhere NEAR enough fries to make up a Happy Meal.
No one at this point thinks Palin is a RINO.
Clemmons reportedly is wounded and cornered.... just hope no one else has to get hurt before this POS is put in the ground.......
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010386387_webleschihome29m.html
The “need” of a governor to let anyone out of their deemed punishment is nearly nil. Therefore, each criminal let go is vouched for by only the governor—without his action, the perp would come up for parole when a judge who witnessed the trial said it would be okay.
The Huckster, unfortunately, thinks it is compassion to let violent rapists and murders go free to make himself look “nice.”
There’s nothing wrong with letting cop killing child rapists out of prison, so long as it’s to make room for people who didn’t buy health insurance.

Mike Huckabee was here.
That means there were many others who could have stopped this guy but didn’t, in multiple states. To put it all on Huck’s head is unfair and no doubt will be responded to by Huck personally in the morning.
this is the only silver lining i see in this tragedy... of course, Huckabee didn't take responsibility for commuting the sentence... he blamed it on the "system."
Thanks for the update. If he’s bleeding, I hope he’s been bleeding all day from a shot by that 4th officer who was able to confront him. And I hope the bleeding continues until there’s no more blood. It’s sad, but I now find myself hoping for every violent criminal to die before entering the justice system. That’s the only way to avoid prison escapes and Huckabee-style assaults on the innocent public.
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