The United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky intends to look into pardons that were issued by former Governor Matt Bevin in his final days in office.
According to a statement from U.S. Attorney Russell Coleman, that he will check to see if any of the state inmates pardoned by Bevin have also committed federal crimes and then his office will investigate accordingly. He says, “Regarding those who received state pardons by our former governor: If the underlying conduct took place in the Western District of Kentucky, it will be treated like any other violation of federal law. We will review the matter when brought to us by one of our Commonwealth’s Attorney colleagues or a partner law enforcement agency and examine through the lens of the statute of limitations, double jeopardy, and evidentiary requirements to determine if it meets Department of Justice standards to then aggressively prosecute.”
He continues, “The uniqueness of a situation of federal prosecution following a state executive pardon will, however, require ultimate approval by the highest levels at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. I am particularly concerned about the risk to the public by those previously convicted of sex offenses, who by virtue of the state pardon, will not fall under any post-release supervision or be required to register as sex offenders.”