Quinn grants clemency before holiday

Just in time for the holiday, Gov. Pat Quinn granted 20 clemency petitions Wednesday in an attempt to chisel away at a backlog of 2,500 cases awaiting action.

The governor denied 48 petitions on Wednesday.

The 68 clemency petitions Quinn acted on were filed from the October 2003, January 2004, April 2004 and July 2004 dockets.

Quinn has acted on 810 clemency petitions since taking office, according to a news release from his office. Three hundred and twenty-eight were granted, while 473 were denied. Eight people who had already been pardoned were expunged of their convictions and one was granted commutation.