Last inmates pardoned by former Gov. Barbour released

Last inmates pardoned by former Gov. Barbour released

The last three inmates still in prison who had been pardoned by former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour were released on Saturday, two days after the state’s highest court cleared the way for their freedom.

The release of the prisoners could be the final chapter in a controversial saga that began in January when Barbour issued more than 200 pardons as he left office, the most in modern Mississippi history.

The pardons prompted an outcry from victims of those released and the families of victims. Many in Mississippi were perplexed why a law-and-order conservative Republican granted them.

Reuters
3/12/12