Governor Cuomo Grants Clemency to 10 New Yorkers Before Exiting Office

While Governor Andrew Cuomo is getting ready to pack up and leave office, he quietly granted clemency to 10 people. Cuomo will officially vacate the office of Governor of New York State on Monday, August 23, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. At midnight on Tuesday, August, 24, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul will become the 57th Governor of New York and the first woman to hold the position. As his days in the office, which he has held for three terms, nears its end, Cuomo announced that he granted the clemencies.

According to WIVB, he said in a statement,

Today I’m proud to help fulfill government’s unique responsibility to harness the power of redemption, encourage those who have made mistakes to engage in meaningful rehabilitation, and empower everyone to work toward a better future for themselves and their families. These ten clemencies are another step on the long march towards a more fair, more just, more equitable, and more empathetic New York.

Here are the people to whom Cuomo granted clemency (via WIVB):

Nehru Gumbs - first-degree Manslaughter and second-degree Criminal Possession of a Weapon and Assault (sentence commuted)
Jon-Adrian Velasquez - second-degree Murder and Attempted Murder, three counts of first-degree Robbery, and first-degree Attempted Robbery (sentence commuted)
George Martinez - second-degree Burglary and Attempted Burglary, and fourth-degree Criminal Possession of Stolen Property and Attempted Criminal Possession of a Weapon (sentence commuted)
Dontie Mitchell, - first-degree Robbery, Criminal Use of a Firearm, and Attempt to Knowingly Make/Possess Dangerous Contraband in Prison, two counts of first-degree Attempted Robbery, two counts of second-degree Criminal Possession of a Weapon, and fourth-degree Grand Larceny (sentence commuted)
Richard “Lee” Chalk, 63 - two counts of second-degree Murder, two counts of first-degree Robbery, two counts of first-degree Burglary, and second-degree Criminal Possession of a Weapon (sentence commuted)
James Pamphile - first-degree Bail Jumping and first-degree Attempted Assault (pardoned)
Ivelisse Castillo - third-degree Attempted Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance (pardoned)
Jorge Quinones - third-degree Attempted Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance (pardoned)
Miriam Ordonez - third-degree Attempted Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance (pardoned)
Catherine Valdez - second-degree Attempted Robbery (pardoned)

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8 Facts to Know About Kathy Hochul

Kathy Hochul will take the reigns of New York on August 24. Here are some things to know about her.

1. She will become New York State's first female and 57th governor on August 24, 2021.

2. Born Kathleen Courtney right here in Buffalo, she was one of her parents' six children.

3. She has spent time in Western New York government. She served as the county clerk of Erie County from 2007 to 2011.

4. She got her start in politics during her matriculation at Syracuse University.

5. Her husband William J. Hochul Jr., is was a United States attorney for the Western District of New York for six years - from 2010 to 2016. He will become the first "First Gentleman" of NY, once she is sworn in as governor.

6. She was the 77th Lieutenant Governor of New York.

7. She has two children - Caitlin Hochul and William Hochul.

8. She comes from an Irish Catholic family.