Governor Andrew Cuomo announced late Sunday that he will pardon thousands of 16 and 17-year-olds convicted of nonviolent offenses.
The pardons are available for nonviolent felony and misdemeanor offenders who meet a certain criteria — as long as they have spent at least a decade without additional convictions, they will be eligible for the governor’s pardon.
“It’s a way to help people get on with their life,” Mr Cuomo told the New York Times.
“When you’re young you can make a mistake, and maybe you don’t have to carry the burden for your entire life.”
According to ny.gov, the application for clemency comes in two separate forms: “commutations of sentence and pardons. In general, a commutation is a sentence reduction and a pardon provides unique relief for individuals who have completed their sentences but remain disadvantaged by their criminal history.”
The pardon would wipe out prior convictions making the ex-offenders
“If you say now that you've been convicted of a crime on a job application, it is very, very hard to get a job,” Cuomo told WNYC-FM.
“My feeling is if you made a mistake when you were 16 or 17 that actually led to a conviction of a crime but you didn't commit any other crime for 10 years, then we will conditionally pardon you and let you get on with your life and remove the obstacle."
