NEW JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order Wednesday that he calls a step toward equity and racial justice.
Those eligible for expedited clemency reviews include people who committed crimes before they turned 25 and did not reoffend. Others include victims of sexual violence or sex trafficking who committed crimes against their perpetrators; people sentenced to long sentences during the ‘War on Drugs’; people given longer-than-offered sentences after asserting their right to a trial; and nonviolent offenders nearing the end of their sentence.
“... The bottom line is, yes, we — and I — are looking for individuals who have been rehabilitated or who could be giving back to their communities but are instead being held back by our criminal justice system,” Murphy said.
Murphy says the state, at the moment, cannot search for those deserving of clemency, so he says it’s up to them to contact the state to plead their case. People can do so on Nj.gov/clemency, which will be constantly monitored.
“Though we have reached a proud new milestone in our journey toward racial justice, let us also recognize that now is not the time to stop and enjoy the view,” Murphy said.
At the signing, Murphy was flanked by rapper Robert “Meek Mill” Williams and activist and entrepreneur Wallace “Wallo267” Peeples.
Both spent years enmeshed in the justice system in Philadelphia. Peeples said he was first arrested, for robbery, at age 11.
“Since that day, June 30, 1990, I’ve never been off of probation, parole, out of the system. I get out of parole in 2040,” he said.
He has nonetheless found success in music, business and entertainment, he said, leading him to become a proud entrepreneur — and taxpayer — in New Jersey.
“I’m saying that to say this: The possibilities after prison are amazing,” Peeples said.
Mill says New Jersey’s criminal justice reform initiatives are worth celebrating.
“I grew up on that side of life and I never thought or imagined I would be in rooms like this,” Mill said, “and you guys giving me the courage and the energy to use my platform and keep pushing forward to better our communities.”
Murphy had not granted any clemency petitions since taking office in 2018.
Justin Dews, a lawyer who will serve as chairperson of the Clemency Advisory Board, said the process would be fair to both petitioners and victims and their families.