The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles has withdrawn its recommendation for a pardon of the late George Floyd.
The decision was announced as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, granted clemency to eight people, while Floyd's posthumous pardon for a 2004 drug conviction was withdrawn because of ''procedural errors and lack of compliance with board rules,'' The Dallas Morning News reported.
Floyd was killed by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in May 2020, touching off a summer of demonstrations and riots.
''The board will review and resolve procedural errors and issues related to any pending applications in compliance with their rules,'' Abbott spokesperson Renae Eze told the news outlet.
''As a result of the board's withdrawal of the recommendation concerning George Floyd, Gov. Abbott did not have the opportunity to consider it. Gov. Abbott will review all recommendations that the board submits for consideration.''
Houston public defender Allison Mathis applied for the posthumous pardon for Floyd and told the News she was not informed of any issues with the application, adding that Thursday's news ''smacks of something untoward.''
''Greg Abbott and his political appointees have let their politics triumph over the right thing to do and what is clearly is justice,'' she told the News. ''This is actually outrageous. I expected an up or a down vote. I did not expect this kind of misconduct.''
''The fish rots from the head.''
Floyd served 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to selling crack cocaine in February 2004, according to the report.
Abbott attended Floyd's Houston memorial service in 2020, according to the report.
Among the pardons approved by Abbott, none served time in the state prison system, the News reported.
''Through the gubernatorial pardon, the governor of Texas has the unique power to grant Texans a second chance,'' Abbott said in a statement. ''These men and women have demonstrated their dedication to turning their lives around and helping their communities.''
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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