Pete Sessions: “one of the key things in any pardon is that the individual is presumed to be guilty of the offenses, and when they…”

“one of the key things in any pardon is that the individual is presumed to be guilty of the offenses, and when they review a pardon or a clemency it normally does not even deal with the question of guilt or innocence. It is assumed since the jury has convicted them and the case has been affirmed--and I don't think there is any doubt about these defendants. They have never even denied their involvement in these offenses. But I would like to point out that before you have clemency for individuals, they really should renounce, clearly and unequivocally, the acts which they have done. You would think that would mean some of these prisoners would say that violence in these circumstances was terribly wrong, I wish I hadn't done it, I am sorry for the lives, I apologize for the destruction and devastation it has caused. But that is not the case. I am reading here from the Washington Post, a newspaper here in Washington known for its pro-Clinton leanings. This is what Michael Kelly has written about this very subject, about whether or not they have renounced their wrongdoing. He says: . . . none of the 16 prisoners has ever admitted to complicity in any fatal bombings or expressed specific remorse for those bombings. No one has ever apologized to the families of those murdered. The statement signed by the 12 who have accepted commutation does renounce the use of violence, but it expresses no contrition or responsibility for past actions.…”