Press Releases
05/27/2020
Richard Thompson Released From Federal Custody Following Appeals Court Ruling
Attorney General Tong Personally Defended Legitimacy of Pardon Process in Oral Arguments Before the First Circuit
(Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong issued the following statement today regarding news that Richard Marvin Thompson has been released from federal custody in Alabama and is returning home to Connecticut. His release follows the decision last Thursday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit that reversed a prior immigration court decision denying Thompson the full benefit of his Connecticut pardon.
“Today is a powerful victory for Richard Thompson, his family, and for the rule of law,” said Attorney General Tong. “Richard Thompson is finally home, but this fight is not over. The Department of Justice must respect Connecticut’s legitimate and lawful pardon process across all cases and release every person still wrongly held under their arbitrary and unlawful policy.”
Thompson had been facing deportation for conviction of a crime in 2001 – even though he earned a full pardon from Connecticut’s Board of Pardons and Paroles. Attorney General Tong filed an amicus brief in Thompson v. Barr and personally defended Connecticut’s pardon process in oral arguments before the First Circuit last July.
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