The state's term-limited governor said Wednesday that he plans to pardon his son for a decade- old felony drug conviction but that his plan to pardon a convicted sex offender, and former friend of his son's, is on hold.
Gov. Mike Beebe said he is set on pardoning Kyle Beebe, who was arrested by White County sheriff's deputies in 2003 after they found more than an ounce of marijuana at the 22-year-old's rural Searcy residence.
Beebe spokesman Matt DeCample said the charge of felony possession of marijuana with intent to deliver did not result in prison time, only probation.
On Oct. 20, the Arkansas Parole Board recommended Kyle Beebe be pardoned. The governor will officially announce his intention, along with pending pardons for others, sometime next month.
"[Beebe] said that Kyle put off submitting that [pardon] application for some time," DeCample said. "He was embarrassed by the whole situation, even though it was quite a long time ago."
On Wednesday, Beebe's office also announced that it was freezing its pardon recommendation for Michael Jackson -- a friend of the Beebe family as he was growing up and a teammate on Kyle's peewee football team that the governor coached -- who was convicted of Internet stalking of a child in September 2008.
Beebe announced Nov. 5 his intention to pardon Jackson, which has drawn criticism from law enforcement officials, as well as elected officials, in Faulkner County.
DeCample said Wednesday that Beebe's office received a copy of an affidavit from a 4-year-old child-custody case from Faulkner County that made "accusations" toward Jackson, accusations that DeCample said were serious enough to put the University of Central Arkansas graduate's pardon on pause.
The affidavit was brought to Beebe's attention by a media outlet, according to DeCample. But he declined to speak in detail about the accusations levied against Jackson, saying the document had not yet been filed in Faulkner County Circuit Court.
DeCample did say that it wasn't related to Jackson's 2007 arrest and that it did not accuse Jackson of committing a sex crime with a minor.
"It's a filing in an ongoing child-custody case. In any child-custody case, chances are you will have accusations levied against various parties, but that doesn't mean that we're not going to take them seriously," DeCample said.
"While ... there does not appear to be any criminal investigation into the matter, Jackson's pardon will not be granted until, and unless, the accusations are found to be untrue," DeCample wrote in the announcement. "Hence, [Beebe] is holding off on the pardon until it's resolved."
DeCample said his office does not have investigators for such a situation. When asked who, if anyone, would investigate the accusations, DeCample said that that would be up to law enforcement officials once the allegations are filed in court.
In late 2007, Jackson was arrested in a sting by Conway Police Department detectives who, posing as a 14-year-old girl, had an online chat of a "sexual" nature with Jackson and arranged for a meeting.
He served part of a two-year sentence and completed his parole by late 2010. He has applied three times for a pardon. The Faulkner County prosecutor's office as well as the county sheriff has objected each time.
Several state legislators including Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Bigelow, and Rep. Stephen Meeks, R-Greenbrier, have also questioned the governor's decision.
Both lawmakers, joined by others in their chambers, sent Beebe a letter saying that a pardon would free Jackson from being registered as a sex offender, an action they said could put children at risk in the future.
In his pardon application, Jackson, now 34, said that if pardoned, he would commit himself to playing a positive role in the community and said he wanted to coach, teach, and work with youths.
DeCample said as in a lot of pardons, Beebe expected some blowback once his intentions were announced.
But the governor's spokesman couldn't recall ever getting written opposition from lawmakers.
Beebe's office waits 30 days after its announcement of a pending pardon before giving it. Sometimes, DeCample said, new information comes to light and the pardon is never granted.
When asked if any pardon had been derailed by a filing from a custody case that had been dormant for more than two years, DeCample said he couldn't recall a similar situation.
While Jackson's case may be more novel, Beebe's plan to clear his son's felony drug conviction is more of the norm.
"This is the type of pardon that is pretty common from this governor. ... [Kyle] was a young, first-time drug offender; he has not had problems since," he said. "He [Beebe] believes in second chances as long as someone has straightened things out. There is no reason he wouldn't hold his son to that standard."
A section on 11/13/2014