No one’s being misleading.
I didn’t say you said. I said I believe he should (now) have been executed.
He was 17 and facing a life sentence for crimes committed at 16 during his violent outbursts in court - before that, just petty theft. It doesn’t take much to see what changed him.
* 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.
Petty theft? You're not just rewriting history, you're redefining criminal statute definitions.
We get it. You're a Huckabee fan and it's natural to try to find all the reasons why your loyalty wasn't misplaced. But your defense relies on downplaying serious crimes while trying to make the issue an abstract--academic musings over the societal influences and implications of the penal system. The grand, overarching justification you create for Huckabee's thought process is an after-the fact rationalization.
Clemmons was not a one time hiccup, but part of a clear pattern of a non-jurist substituting his own judgment for that of judges, juries, and prosecutors over and over again. Yes, it is a governor's prerogative to do so occasionally. But the sheer number of Huckabee's insertions of himself into the process forfeits the argument that his commutation of Clemmons's sentence was the result of careful, studied thought on the specifics of this one case. It's part of a clear, activist agenda.
It's painful to realize someone you admire and respect has serious flaws and blindspots. He's lucky to have passionate defenders such as you. But neither yours nor Huckabee's protestations and explanations can save his political career. It's over. Done. His explanation tour on the talk show circuit--especially this last race-card travesty with Geraldo--is only compounding the damage. He's gone all in on a losing hand, and the likelihood is, he's just gambled away any career at all in the public eye.