If you want 17 year olds that commit burglaries to serve more than 47 years then that has to be consistently applied across the board. This is just demagoguery and piling on with the benefit of hindsight which Huckabee didn't have.
That statement is a complete disservice to the truth.
* Sentenced to 5 years for robbery in Pulaski County, Aug. 3, 1989.
* Sentenced to 8 years for burglary, theft and probation revocation in Pulaski County, Sept. 9, 1989
* Sentenced to an indeterminate amount for aggravated robbery and theft in Pulaski County, Nov. 15, 1989
* Sentenced to 20 years each for burglary and theft of property in Pulaski County, Feb. 23, 1990.
* Sentenced to 6 years for firearm possession in Pulaski County, Nov. 19, 1990.The record shows Clemmons went on a crime spree in 1988-89. In November 1988, Clemmons punched a 7th grader in the face and stole his necklace. That resulted in the initial 5-year sentence.
Clemmons turned 17 years old in February 1989. In April of that year, he broke into an Arkansas state trooper's home and stole $6,700 worth of items, including a gun. A couple of weeks later, Clemmons was arrested for bringing a gun on school property.
Less than two weeks later after the gun incident, Maurice Clemmons and an accomplice were arrested for two separate robberies on the same night. They robbed a woman in front of an Arkansas bar. Clemmons claimed he had a gun. The woman said, "Well, why don't you just shoot?". Clemmons punched her in the head and snatched her purse.
35 minutes later, Clemmons and his friend hit a man in the head and stole his $500 gold chain in front of a convenience store. They were also questioned about two other similar robberies and one attempted robbery that occurred the same night.
There were also three separate courtroom incidents in 1990 where Clemmons tried to use a weapon against a judge, threw a padlock at a bailiff, and tried to take a guard's pistol. A judge ordered Clemmons be placed in leg shackles because he felt Clemmons has threatened him. Clemmons also displayed very erratic behavior during the trial, mumbling loudly throughout the proceedings. He also made an obscene gesture toward a state trooper testifying against him. There is a definite pattern of showing a complete lack of respect, and a lot of hostility, toward authority figures.
Clemmons would not have been eligible for parole until 2015. Mike Huckabee's commutation in 2000 made him eligible immediately. Clemmons was granted parole just one month later. He was sentenced to 108 total years for 8 different felonies. Clemmons served only 11.
I am not faulting Huckabee for his lack of hindsight, I am faulting him for his pathetic lack of foresight. Violent felons, with records like Clemmons almost always commit more violent crimes if they are released.
Huckabee took a gamble on this psychopath and lost his reputation. Sadly, 4 police officers and their families lost infinitely more!