Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis announced late Thursday he’s ready to take up the requested pardons for the Groveland Four immediately.
Though he didn’t explicitly say he’s prepared to issue the pardons, DeSantis called the Groveland Four “victims” and expressed strong sympathy with the cause seeking belated justice for four young black men falsely accused of raping a white woman in 1949. He called on all Floridians to learn about and from the case.
“Seventy years is a long time. And that’s the amount of time four young men have been wrongly written into Florida history for crimes they did not commit and punishments they did not deserve,” DeSantis declared in a news release issued by his transition office. “Justice was miscarried for the Groveland Four beginning with events set in motion in 1949. Though these men now lie in graves, their stories linger in search of justice.”
DeSantis’ announcement comes after Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis announced on Wednesday that he would support the pardons. Agriculture Commissioner-elect Nikki Fried vowed in September she would support the pardons. With DeSantis on board, the pardons would have the votes necessary to be issued. Attorney General-elect Ashley Moody also has said she wants to hear the case.
DeSantis indicated he might not wait until the next meeting of the Executive Clemency Board, which is not scheduled until March. That board is made up of DeSantis and the other Florida Cabinet members, Patronis, Fried, and Moody. DeSantis said he would make it a priority for the first meeting of the Florida Cabinet in January.
“@RonDeSantisFl, thank you for recognizing the injustices done the #GrovelandFour for ‘crimes they did not commit & punishments they did not deserve,’” tweeted Chris Hand, who represents a coalition of family members of the Groveland Four and advocates for them. “We greatly appreciate your making @TheGroveland4 & their families one of your first priorities as Governor.”
The Groveland Four were Ernest Thomas, who was shot and killed by a mob shortly after the false reports of rape were…
