Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles grants 38 absolute pardons, denies 1; continues 1 case

The Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles met by video conference on Aug. 6, 2025, for its scheduled absolute-pardon session and voted on more than three dozen applications. The board tentatively granted absolute pardons to 38 applicants, denied one application and continued one case to the Sept. 3 docket for follow-up. Results announced at the hearing are tentative pending administrative record checks and criminal-record clearance by the Connecticut State Police as usual.

At the start of the session Chair Robert Czajuskas said the board had reviewed cases in a prescreen and that any pardon voted at the hearing would remain tentative until all background checks and agency clearances are complete. In most matters the board allowed applicants to make brief statements, asked follow-up questions about rehabilitation steps and community involvement, then took a motion and roll-call vote.

The board’s decisions followed a common pattern: applicants described post-conviction rehabilitation, participation in treatment or reentry programming, steady employment and community or volunteer activity. Several applicants said they had used training or job skills learned in prison to found small businesses or to mentor others. In a small number of cases board members pressed applicants…