Today, Illinois Governor released a batch of 20 executive clemency decisions ahead of the President's Day weekend. Of the 20 decisions, six were granted and fourteen were denied. The convictions which received pardons included retail theft, burglary, battery and forgery.

Congratulations to those receiving pardons! You will now be eligible to petition the Court to have the criminal records expunged.

Today, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner's Office announced the release of 88 executive clemency decisions in advance of the Christmas weekend. Of the 88 decisions, 10 were granted and 78 denied. Some of the offenses that received pardons include retail theft, burglary, and drug possession.

Two of my clients were among the ten receiving pardons. Congratulations to the other eight receiving clemency as well! For those still pending or denied, your case is likely eligible for sealing which is a still a great option for most. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Today, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner released 102 decisions on executive clemency petitions prior to the Thanksgiving Day vacation. Of the 102, five were granted pardons and 97 petitions were denied. The offenses that were pardoned included burglary, theft, and drug charges. Those granted pardons will now be eligible to have their cases expunged.

Congratulations to those receiving their much-earned pardons! For those denied, keep in mind that recent changes to Illinois law may now allow for your cases to be sealed instead.

In advance of the Labor Day weekend, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner today released a batch of 94 executive clemency decisions, granting seven and denying 87. According to the Prisoner Review Board, the convictions that were granted pardons were for drugs, burglary, forgery, domestic battery and retail theft.

Congrats to those receiving clemency! For those denied or still pending, take note that your case(s) may be eligible for sealing under the new law in Illinois.

Governor Rauner signed a bill today that expands the number of cases eligible for sealing in Illinois. Previously, most misdemeanors and only a select few felonies were eligible for sealing. If you were convicted of a low-level felony that wasn't specifically eligible, then you likely could petition the Prisoner Review Board to gain sealing eligibility. For anyone not eligible for this relief, the only option was to seek clemency from the Governor.

But now with the change in the law, most felony convictions become eligible for sealing without the need for special approval. The new law takes effect immediately. If you have a case the was previously only eligible for a pardon, contact my office to see if the new law applies to you.

Today, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner released a batch of executive clemency decisions to kick off the weekend prior to the Fourth of July. Of the 114 clemency actions, 10 were granted and 104 were denied. The petitions granted included pardons for theft, burglary, drug crimes, forgery and misdemeanor assault.

Congratulations for those receiving their well-earned pardons! Now you will be able to move forward with your rights intact and you can petition the court to have the criminal records expunged. For those denied or still pending, don't give up hope because your time may still come!

In advance of the Memorial Day weekend, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner's Office announced today that he has released his 17th batch of executive clemency decisions. In this group, five petitions were granted and 197 were denied. The offenses that were pardoned include attempted burglary, theft, and drug cases.

One of my clients was among the five that received a pardon. We will now be eligible to expunge that client's criminal record in Court. Congratulations to the other four that received clemency as well! To the rest that were denied or are still pending, good luck and keep hope alive because your time may still come!

In advance of the Easter weekend, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner decided on 144 executive clemency petitions, granting four and denying 140. This marks Rauner's 16th batch of decisions since taking office in January of 2015. The pardoned offenses include a felony theft, drug charges, and aggravated battery.

Congratulations to those few that have received their pardons! They are surely well-earned. For those that were denied or still pending, keep hope alive because your time may still come in the future.

Yesterday, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner announced that he has released the final batch of clemency decisions for petitions filed under previous administrations. Now all clemency petitions that are pending before the governor were filed while he was in office.

The backlog of clemency decisions was created under former Governor Rod Blagojevich. During his six years in office, he only decided on around 1,000 petitions. The rest were simply ignored and allowed to pile up. When Blagojevich was removed from office, roughly 3,000 sat pending for incoming Governor Pat Quinn.

Former Governor Quinn acted on 4,928 petitions during his six years in office, granting 1,795 of them. Quinn's batches of clemency decisions typically mixed newer petitions in with older ones. So while Quinn decided on more petitions than the backlog he inherited, some petitions filed under Blagojevich remained when Quinn left office.

Gov. Rauner, by contrast, has mostly decided on petitions by order of filing. In his two years as governor, Rauner has acted on 2,333 clemency petition, granted 80 pardons and three commutations. With yesterday's release, Rauner has completely worked through the remaining petitions filed before he took office.

In the AP article, Rauner acknowledged that he is not as good as Quinn was when it comes to granting petitions, but defended himself by pointing at governors in some other states who are even less merciful.

In advance of the Thanksgiving holiday, today Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner released his 13th batch of clemency decisions. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, eight pardons were granted and over 200 were denied.

The highlight from this group of pardon decisions is Patrick McNamee, a man convicted of Reckless Homicide before going on to become a pilot in the Air Force. The Sun-Times article has more details about his interesting story.

Based on these numbers, it is likely that Gov. Rauner has completely worked through the clemency backlog that built up under former governor Rod Blagojevich and carried through to former governor Pat Quinn.

One of my clients was also included in the eight. So, congratulations to that person, to Mr. McNamee, and to the others that received their pardons today!