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Archive: March 2022

Wilson Center Applauds Gov. Roy Cooper for Exercising Clemency Power

March 17, 2022

Late last week, Gov. Roy Cooper announced he would commute the sentences of April Barber, Joshua McKay, and Anthony Willis — three individuals who were sentenced to long terms in prison for crimes they committed when they were teenagers.

This … Continue Reading →

Everything You Need to Know About Clemency in North Carolina

September 17, 2021

By Ben Finholt and Jamie Lau

On April 8, 2021, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order 208, establishing the Juvenile Sentence Review Board. This board is a new mechanism for executive clemency, which has been described as “provid[ing] … Continue Reading →

Op-ed: NC is Failing the Wrongfully Convicted; HB 877 Could Help

May 11, 2021

Duke Law Professors James E. Coleman Jr. and Jamie T. Lau brought much-needed attention in an op-ed published Monday to the fact that even after serving 25 years in prison, North Carolina can get away with compensating the wrongfully convicted … Continue Reading →

Attorney for Man Granted Clemency: At Minimum, Legal System Should Clear Hurdles for Exonerated

February 9, 2021

By Ruthie Kesri

Gov. Roy Cooper announced in late December he would be issuing pardons of innocence to five men he believed were innocent, serving time for crimes they did not commit.

Cooper’s actions allow for those five men to … Continue Reading →

What Prisons Could Still Do to Save Lives

September 18, 2020

By Deniz Ariturk

Six months after the first nationwide shutdown, US prisons and jails continue to be top COVID hot spots. Case numbers have continued to increase rapidly in prisons even as they plateaued nationwide in early summer, and new … Continue Reading →

Duke Law Faculty: Cooper Should Use Clemency Power, Release Related Records

July 16, 2020

Roy Cooper may become the first North Carolina governor in more than 40 years to complete a term without granting clemency to a single person, which includes sentence commutations and pardons of forgiveness or innocence.

Three faculty at the Duke … Continue Reading →