I beg your commutation?
Pardon me, but at least one of President Biden's 1,500-odd commutations strikes me as particularly odd (and flat-out wrong): disgraced Dixon, Illinois comptroller Rita Crundwell.
Of those 1,499 prison sentence commutations provided by President Biden on Thursday, one from Illinois is sparking an especially strongly negative reaction: the one that sets free former Dixon comptroller Rita Crundwell.
As reported by the Chicago Tribune, “Crundwell, 71, pleaded guilty in 2012 to what authorities then called the largest municipal fraud in the country’s history, admitting she stole $53.7 million from the city over more than a decade and used the money to finance her quarter horse business and lavish lifestyle.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Crundwell had been released to a halfway house. Now, she’s fully wrapped up her “hard time” about four years ahead of schedule. Her conviction stands, but plenty of critics aren’t standing for Crundwell’s commutation.
“Commuting her 20-year sentence is a slap in the face to all the hardworking police officers, firefighters, city workers, and residents of Dixon,” Republican U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood, who represents Dixon, was quoted as saying in the Tribune.
In 2018, toward the end of my talk-show series for the Village of Oak Park’s cable channel, “A Beer With Baron,” Crundwell was the ghost who hovered over my interview with Kelly Richmond Pope.
An accounting and accounting forensics professor at DePaul University Pope directed “All the Queen’s Horses,” an excellent documentary that dissected how Crundwell fleeced Dixon taxpayers over a 20-year span.
You can see the interview here:
Appropriately, Biden is getting lots of blowback on his Crundwell clemency. Who on his team did the vetting on this one?
Halfway there
In case you hadn’t noticed, yesterday was the midway point between Election Day and Inauguration Day for Donald Trump. We’ll see how well Biden fares during this final stretch, and over time it will be interesting to see what these actions will have on his long-term legacy.
Meantime, one step he should absolutely not take is issuing pardons for people such as Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger and other members of the January 6th Select Commitee that investigated Trump’s role in inciting the Capitol insurrection.
There’s nothing to pardon. No evidence that they’ve committed a crime. Issuing “preemptive pardons” would play into Trump’s crazy-making hands.
I love Kinzinger’s response to Trump’s blowhard cage-rattling that Kinzinger and his committee peers (among others) should be jailed: “Bring it on.”
Top 10 of 2024: Sneak Preview
Just as I did last year, with my “Top 10 of ’23” review, I’ll soon provide a round-up of my 10 most popular columns from The Inside Edge this year.
For now, just a brief note that the three pieces vying for the top slot are about vastly different topics: “My SI Journey” from Jan. 20th, “Attitude of Gratitude” from March 30th and “The great in-between” from October 12th.
Each is linked below, if you want to read (or review) any/all of them.
Who knows, maybe it’s your click of one of the posts above that will determine which of the above attains the year-end #1 ranking.
By the way, do you want to help choose my least-read column of the year?
Currently, it’s a tie between “Keep it on the front page,” (November 2nd) in which I recount my November 2007 stakeout of the notorious criminal cop, Drew Peterson; and “Pen pals,” (March 16th) in which I recount my struggles to communicate with my brother, Phil.
Interestingly, in both cases, I had decidedly challenging encounters knocking on doors. Over the next two weeks, whichever one you ignore more will lock in the dubious distinction of least-read Inside Edge column of 2024.
Emoji Expansion
Wrapping things up by circling back to this week’s lead item: sometimes a social media post calls for an emoji—or one of those small digital images or icons used to express an idea or emotion—beyond the selections usually offered.
Such was the case with Kelly Richmond Pope’s understated LinkedIn post about Rita Grundwell’s sentence getting commuted. LinkedIn offers six emoticons: like, celebrate, support, love, insightful and funny.
More than a few people made comments about the clemency news, noting that there was no fitting visual that could capture their reaction.
Part of that is due to the LinkedIn platform being more buttoned-up and business-oriented—there are no emojis for anger, sadness or astonishment (wow!), which are available on the more free-wheeling, personal Facebook platform.
But I’d suggest that it’s also time for an emoji that conveys a response of pulling your hair out in abject exasperation. I found one online, below, that does the trick.
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I wonder what effect titles on Substack have on views? I wonder if maybe people just didn't read Pen Pals because the title sounded too sentimental and brought back awkward memories for them, or something? Given that people are generally so interested in Phil? I certainly didn't expect that one to be about Phil. I stubbornly cling to the title that I think will best describe my posts, but I am aware of the possible effect of something that just doesn's sound interesting or accessible, and vice versa.
I think the burden of proof or at least the case should very much be on the government for a pardon or commutation. If the power went away, I don't think we'd missed it, but Emily Bazelon thinks it's important so that one can pardon low-level marijuana users, draft card burners, etc.
One thing I learned in reading Julian Barnes' narrative non-fiction work about George Edalji (Arthur & George) is that there was no process of appeals in England before his case in the early 20th century. The pardon was what was supposed to be used in its place. I do understand our current difference (appeals usually being on legalistic terms, pardons for mercy or nullification), but do we really need both pardons and a process of appeals?
And I understand where you are coming from. Unfortunately, we are soon in the second administration of a person who has proven that he has no regard for law, for norms, for anyone who doesn't lick his boots. The entire country is terrified of Trump. Trump will do whatever he wants. Look at his cabinet picks. We have to hope that there are enough patriotic republicans willing to say no. As far as Dixon, if I was a resident I would be upset but after a period of time I would come to the same conclusion. She had about 4 years left of house arrest; she wasn't let out of jail. And so far, out of 1500 commutations there's been 2 (that I've heard of ) that are questionable. What's the quote? 100 guilty people should go free rather than an innocent person be punished.