Dear Governor Lamont, Chairperson Zaccagnini, Executive Director Sparaco, Senator Winfield, Senator Looney, Representative Stafstrom and Speaker Ritter:

We write to express our concern with the recent decision to suspend commutations for Connecticut prisoners. We support the work of the Board of Pardons and Paroles to establish a robust and thorough commutation process that thoughtfully balanced the importance of second chances for Connecticut prisoners, the perspectives of victims and public safety considerations. We urge the board to resume the commutation process, which served as a critical safety valve in our state's criminal justice system.

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A longstanding feature of American criminal justice

Clemency, defined as "the power of … a governor to pardon a criminal or commute a criminal sentence" is a deeply-rooted and fundamental part of the American criminal justice system. Since the founding of the British Colonies, clemency has been available in some form. Today, every state in the nation offers some form of clemency or commutation.