Most people believe that getting a Pardon from Oklahoma’s Governor must be a rare thing. That’s just not true - and now, we can prove it.

In September, 2020, Michael A. Risley sent an Open Records Act request to the Oklahoma Secretary of State, seeking a summary of every pardon ever granted in Oklahoma. It was a lot.

After analyzing the Secretary of State’s data, we found out some interesting facts, which are reproduced below. It turns out that Oklahoma actually leads the nation - and the Federal Government - in the restoration of civil rights after a felony sentence has been successfully completed.

The data on pardons all time, going back to the Territorial days:

• Oklahoma Governors have issued 28,550 pardons since 1880;

• Approximately 18,845 (66%) of those pardons were granted by only six Governors. They are:

  • Governor Lee Cruce: 2,847 pardons, 1911-1915;

  • Governor Robert L. Williams: 3,646 pardons, 1915-1919;

  • Governor James B.A. Robertson: 3,694 pardons, 1919-1923;

  • Governor Martin E. Trapp: 3,309 pardons, 1923-1927;

  • Governor Henry S. Johnnston: 2,884 pardons, 1927-1929;

  • Governor William J. Holloway: 2,465 pardons, 1929-1931.

Why, you ask? We’re painting with a broad brush here, but the short version of the story is that those six Governors used the pardon power to reward their supporters for illegal and quasi-illegal acts that kept those Governors in power.

In response to this, the people of Oklahoma passed State Question 309 in 1944, which created the Oklahoma Pardon & Parole Board. After SQ309 passed, the Governor was required to have the Board’s recommendation before they were allowed to issue a pardon. As the Board’s five members were appointed by all branches of the government - the Legislature, the Supreme Court, and the Governor - this effectively stopped the use of pardons as a political reward.

The data on pardons since the creation of the Pardon & Parole Board in 1944:

• Since 1944, Oklahoma Governors have issued 7,440 pardons;

• There have been 17 Governors between 1944-2020, for an average of 437.6 pardons per Governor;

• The average holds true for both Republican and Democratic Governors;

• The most pardons issued overall in this period was by Governor David Hall (D): 792 pardons from 1971-1975;

• The most pardons issued by a Republican in this period was by Governor Dewey F. Bartlett: 650 pardons from 1967-1971.

The data on modern (since 1995) pardons:

• Modern Governors have generally kept up the pace of their prior Governors:

  • Governor Frank Keating (R) issued 208 pardons between 1995-2003;

  • Governor Brad Henry (D) issued 530 pardons between 2003-2011;

  • Governor Mary Fallin (R) issued 734 pardons between 2011-2019;

• The average for modern Governors is therefore 490 pardons each, which is 16% higher than the pre-modern pardon average (421 per Governor from 1944-1995).

The data on Governor Kevin Stitt as of September, 2020:

• Governor Stitt has already drawn even with the average of his three predecessors, in the first 18 months of his first term, by issuing 489 pardons between January, 2019 and September, 2020;

• This is the important part: assuming that Gov. Stitt maintains his pace (about 24 pardons per month), and that he wins a second term (he will, we all know it), he is on track to issue approximately 2,500 pardons - a number not seen in Oklahoma since 1911-1931.

What does that mean? We’ll say it loud and clear:

This is the best time in almost 100 years
to get a Governor’s Pardon.

The Secretary of State’s data proves the anecdotal experience of our office: if you are a good person, who has served their time, and been a contributing member of society since your release from prison, there is no need to suffer anymore. Let us help you get your life back on track, and get your civil rights restored.

End Note #1: You caught us, we didn’t actually do the analysis on the other 50 states. However, anecdotally, pardons are very rarely granted in most states - which is the why people think they are rarely granted in Oklahoma. We feel comfortable asserting that Oklahoma leads the nation in pardons, now that we know we are issuing about 500 pardons per Governor, and that Governor Stitt is likely to issue more than 2500 pardons just by himself.