Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour’s pardon of a convicted murderer who worked as an inmate trusty at the Governor’s Mansion came two weeks after the man was denied parole by a state board.
A letter to one of the victims in the case said the Mississippi Parole Board turned down 40-year-old David Gatlin on Dec. 27. The letter, dated Jan. 4 and obtained by The Associated Press, did not explain why the Parole Board rejected Gatlin’s parole request. It said he was due for another parole hearing in October.
It’s worth noting David Gatlin shot and killed his estranged wife, Tammy Ellis Gatlin, while she was holding their young baby, then shot her long-time friend Randy Walker in the head.
Thanks to Gov. Barbour’s pardon, David Gatlin is now a free man, while the surviving victim and the relatives of both victims are left wondering why a murderer is walking the streets despite his “life” sentence.
The old boys club has always had get out of free cards- sometimes utilized before indictments.
I think Arnold Schwarzenegger pardoned a murderer or someone associated with a murder right before his term ended, too. The person he pardoned was a friend or the son of a friend…