The announcement from Austin is good news we’ve been waiting for
On Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott granted a Christmas wish that has been on our list for two years: a clear path to restoration for incarcerated victims of human trafficking.
Abbott announced the creation of a customized clemency application for survivors of trafficking and domestic abuse. Under the new protocol, Texas inmates will be allowed to cite their experience as victims when requesting relief from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.
“Texas is committed to empowering survivors of domestic abuse and human trafficking,” Abbott said. “And one of the surest signals of that goal is laying out a true path to redemption and restoration.”
We couldn’t agree more. On Christmas Day 2018, we called for just such a program. Acknowledging that the governor can’t grant clemency without a recommendation from the parole board, we wrote, “We therefore call on that seven-member board and state officials to reassess the rules governing pardons and clemency in regard to victims of sex trafficking. We believe the board can create a process for those convicted of prostitution or drug-related crimes committed while they were being trafficked.”
And again, a few days after Christmas 2019, we called on Abbott to use the symbolic power of the holiday tradition of granting clemency to achieve more than forgiveness for a handful of people, but instead, “to use the power of clemency in the service of a grand and important revolution against modern-day sex slavery.”
The following week, the governor issued a full pardon to Robbie Ann Hamilton, a trafficking victim who committed petty offenses many years in the past, during a time when she was addicted to drugs and trafficked. It was the right thing to do and it sent a powerful message to help reframe how Texans think about people caught in webs of abuse and oppression.
We also support the manner in which Abbott is approaching these changes. Last summer, Abbott vetoed House Bill 3078, which would have set up a new review panel outside of the parole board to process these kinds of applications. Abbott said he lauded the effort but “adding a thick layer of bureaucracy” to the Board of Pardons and Paroles was “not the way to help victims of human trafficking.”
We agree that the existing parole board is capable of hearing these requests. The new clemency application will rightly include not only those Texans trafficked for sex but those trafficked for labor and those who committed crimes while under the influence of an abusive partner.
As always, we advise caution and prudence. In 2018, we recommended a clemency process that excludes anyone guilty of unlawful violence against others or who has been a perpetrator as well as a victim of trafficking. The Board of Pardons and Paroles still has work to do in reviewing these applications.
But for thousands of victims who have been coerced, tricked, lied to and made dependent by means of drugs, debt or physical violence, Abbott’s actions here are a gift and a reminder that leadership matters, progress is possible and hope should burn brightly within us even as we face tough challenges.
