Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles grants 30 pardons, denies 1 in January 14 absolute‑pardon session

The Connecticut Board of Pardons and Paroles held an absolute‑pardon hearing via Zoom on Jan. 14, 2025, and voted on more than three dozen individual applications. Chairperson Rufaro O. Berry opened the session by noting the board’s authority to erase convictions and issue certificates of employability, saying, "The people of the state of Connecticut have vested the board of pardons and paroles with extraordinary powers to grant pardons for convictions in the state."

The board’s panel for the hearing included Chairperson Rufaro O. Berry and members Sergio Rodriguez and Deborah Smith Palmeri. Parole Officer Ferraro served as hearing coordinator and staff assisted throughout the livestreamed session. The board treated each application as a separate formal motion and recorded votes on each item; results were read into the record at the time each application was considered.

Why it matters: A full, absolute pardon erases a criminal conviction under Connecticut practice only after required record checks and administrative steps are complete. Pardons in these cases can affect employment eligibility, licensing and other collateral consequences. Victim input and the seriousness of the original offense were central to the board’s deliberations on several contested files.

What the board decided: By the end of the session the board granted a majority of the cases it heard, denied one application, and continued two matters to later dockets. The board recorded motions and votes for each applicant in the public record and, in most cases, issued unanimous or majority decisions to grant pardons. The board also reminded applicants that any pardon is tentative until state police record checks are complete and the…