Pardon This! Idea for Unique Law School Clinic to Focus on Executive Pardon Power
By: Steve Grumm
For years, lawyers, faith-based groups and students have helped file petitions for inmates seeking to cut short lengthy prison sentences. But there have been no comparable resources for felons who sought pardons after serving their time.That may soon change. In response to stories published in December by ProPublica and The Washington Post, former Maryland governor Robert L. Ehrlich (R) plans to launch the nation’s first law school clinic and training program devoted to pardons. …
Ehrlich said he intends to contribute to the program and raise funds for it. He is working to find it a home, looking at Georgetown law school and George Washington University, as well as other institutions in the Washington area.
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Ehrlich’s proposal is modeled in part after the country’s only law school clinic for commutations, started a year ago at the University of St. Thomas law school in Minneapolis. The commutations program is run by Mark Osler, a former federal prosecutor who has argued numerous cases before the Supreme Court.