Posted on 08/16/2009 7:45:56 AM PDT by Titus-Maximus
Virginia’s Democratic governor has ignited public outrage by pardoning—at the request of a major political donor—three men convicted of raping and killing a teenager.
Gov. Tim Kaine ordered freedom for three of four former sailors who raped and murdered another sailor's 18-year-old wife in 1997. The men had all confessed to the gruesome crimes and were serving life sentences before the good governor came to their rescue this week.
Kaine said he decided there are “serious doubts about at least the level of their complicity in the crime,” though the governor did find that the “combined weight of all the evidence in this case does not conclusively exonerate the petitioners from any possibility of involvement in the rape and murder…” Any involvement, according to Kaine, was of a significantly lesser magnitude than that of the primary perpetrator.
In his public statement announcing the pardons the governor failed to mention that a powerful political donor, who happens to be a famous novelist writing a screenplay about the case, has long fought for the men’s release. John Grisham, known for publishing legal thrillers that regularly become Hollywood films, assures the convicted felons are innocent and so does his public policy group (Innocence Project), which is dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people.
Since 2000 Grisham has donated nearly $400,000 to Virginia Democrats, about half of it to Kaine and his political action committee. Perhaps the acclaimed author also offered Kaine a key role, as the hero who saved the wrongfully imprisoned sailors, in the upcoming Hollywood flick.
The victim’s outraged and demoralized parents point out that Grisham’s wealth and influence are obviously more important to the governor’s political aspirations than truth or justice. It’s probably no consolation that the governor assured the pardon is not a “conclusive ruling of innocence” but rather an adjustment that makes the sentence more appropriate given the “doubts that surround" the sailors' involvement.
He’s the DNC chair, was an early Obama supporter, is a pro-abortion Catholic.
What more do you want to know?
Isn’t he now head of the DNC as well as Governor?
Yes, he is. The question of the day is whether Governor Kaine is on the state payroll or the DNC payroll today.
Democratic Governor? Dicey? Quid pro quo? Who’d a thunk..?
Omg had to look him up he was the eyebrow
Richmond ping. Governor Gridlock ping. Governor Hinky Eyebrow ping.
Yep, he is. :D
Obviously, he’s on the murderers’ payroll.
I assume the NOW gang will be all over this in about .....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
I bet Grisham (a lawyer) had these murderers and rapists sign over their literary rights for his next book and movie.
He gives Kaine $200,000, makes 2 to 5 million on the book/movie. Slick move.
porn author probably pardoning his own people
Fixed it for ya.
Hopefully the family has sense to file civil suit against these guys to prevent their profiting...
Imagine if the governor in question was named.... Sarah Palin.
Oh, the humanity!
After only 12 years, yet. Sick.
How arrogant and greedy. He gives minimal credit to the criminal justice process which determined that these individuals were guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. A jury sat through the entire prosecution of each of these people and deliberated all of the evidence. The Governor did not. The only evidence he deliberated was how large were the contributions.
If you read the story, it seems pretty likely that they are, in fact, innocent.
The crime scene was consistent with a single perpetrator - and another completely unrelated man who also confessed had his DNA found at the scene.
I must admit, my first reaction was to condemn Kaine - but, after an extensive reading, it sounds like he’s done a reasonable and, I dare say, even brave thing here.
And according to the article all 3 CONFESSED to the crime.
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