WASHINGTON (AP) - Former Maryland Gov. Robert Ehrlich has teamed up with the Catholic University of America's Columbus School of Law to open a clinic this semester on clemency matters for people with criminal convictions.
The initiative will include a workshop for newly elected governors and their staff on clemency powers.
The CUA Law/Ehrlich Partnership on Clemency will be part of the law school's Innocence Project Clinic. Students will receive clinical experience by preparing pardon applications.
Ehrlich, who became Maryland's first Republican governor in 36 years when he was elected in 2002, made clemency requests a priority of his administration from 2003 to 2007. He says he believes it's an important part of the job description of a chief executive.
