NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Governor Bill Lee spent Friday morning calling the families of 43 people across Tennessee with the news that they have been granted executive clemency.
Those granted executive clemency had been out of jail or prison for at least five years and are no longer on probation or any other type of supervision. Lee called the process of granting executive clemency a “very serious responsibility” that’s “unique to the role of the governor.”
Lee clarified that his actions differ from the commutations announced by President Joe Biden earlier this week; Lee said the people he granted clemency have invested back into the community. All executive clemency decisions are made in consultation with the Tennessee Board of Parole, which issues non-binding recommendations for each case.
One of those granted clemency was Brittany Nepa, who was convicted of several misdemeanors. However, Nepa sought counseling and proceeded to earn a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering with a minor in computer science from the University of Memphis. She regularly made the Dean’s List while studying and has maintained steady employment in addition to volunteering with Memphis Animal Services.
Nepa’s story echoes others highlighted by Lee, like Lanesha Faye Brown. Brown attempted second-degree murder over 20 years ago when she was just 13 years old. She was bullied, and when one bully attacker her, she tried to retaliate with a small knife in her bag for an art project. That was Brown’s sole criminal incident and there was no victim opposition to her clemency claim.
Brown has been married for 15 years and has earned her associate’s degree, maintaining employment all the while. One of those employment opportunities was at a Nashville hotel. While at the hotel, a background check revealed her past and resulted in her termination. However, her colleagues and the general manager of the hotel were so impressed, they worked together to lobby the corporate office and allow her to return to work.
Last December, Lee granted executive clemency to nearly two dozen people, including 22 full pardons. In 2022, Lee granted clemency to 16 people, including two Davidson County women convicted of murder. Seventeen people were granted executive clemency by Lee in 2021, with 13 of those receiving pardons.
