Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson has formally requested Gov. Tina Kotek to revoke the commutations of 57 individuals approved by former Gov. Kate Brown. According to a letter sent to Kotek, 11 out of the 138 people in Marion County who had their sentences commuted by Brown have committed new felonies or misdemeanors since their release, and an additional 28 are wanted for crimes or have violated the terms of their release.
The county attorney’s office specifically pointed out Thomas Healy, a convicted felon who had his sentence commuted by Brown, and who is currently facing murder charges for the shooting death of Scott Tanner Jr. at Geer Park in August 2022. Kotek had previously reached out to Oregon’s district attorneys, asking them to report any individuals whose commuted sentences were violated.
Kotek has already revoked the commutations for at least five other individuals, including Jesse Lee Calhoun, who is charged with killing four women and leaving their bodies in the woods in Multnomah, Clackamas, and Polk counties.
Brown made history by granting a record number of commutations in her final years in office, including the commutation of about 1,000 medically fragile prisoners in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, she commuted the sentences of 41 inmates who helped fight the Labor Day wildfires.
In her final months in office, Brown also pardoned approximately 45,000 individuals with marijuana convictions and commuted the death sentences of all 17 people on Oregon’s Death Row.
The recent developments have sparked concern and controversy within Marion County as well as throughout the state of Oregon. It remains to be seen how Gov. Kotek will respond to Clarkson’s request, and how this situation will ultimately unfold.
*Bill Poehler covers Marion and Polk County for the Statesman Journal. Contact him at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Marion County DA asks Gov. Kotek to revoke commutations of 57 people
