Folow-up: Mills rejects expedited clemency request from first Mainer in prison to enter PhD program
In a decision that likely squashes the chances that the first Mainer in the state prison system to enter into a PhD program will be able to attend classes in-person, Gov. Janet Mills declined this week to grant a request for clemency by Brandon Brown, instead saying that Brown should submit his request to the state Pardon Board.
As Beacon previously reported, Brown — who has been in the prison system in Maine for over a decade and has earned master’s degree, bachelor’s degree and associate’s degree on the inside — previously submitted a petition through the board last year only to have his clemency request ultimately denied by Mills without any public explanation.
This time around, Brown, who was sentenced in 2010 to 17 years in prison for a shooting that left a man partially paralyzed, made an expedited appeal directly to Mills in a letter submitted in July.
Brown’s effort has received support from a wide range of people, including the victim of his crime, a state lawmaker, professors at George Mason University and many others. Supporters have argued that approving the request would facilitate Brown’s studies at George Mason — where he has completed one year of a PhD program in restorative justice — by allowing him to attend classes in-person and would provide hope to those in the prison system looking to pursue education and other rehabilitative programming.
Read more: https://mainebeacon.com/mills-rejects-expedited-clemency-request-from-first-mainer-in-prison-to-enter-phd-program/
Earlier thread:
'I'm asking for a chance': First Mainer in prison to enter PhD program again files for clemency
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10554188