‘I agree with Bob’: Gee and Ursula weigh in after Doug Baldwin publicly challenges Governor Ferguson on clemency denials

Seattle Seahawks legend Doug Baldwin publicly voiced his frustration with Washington Governor Bob Ferguson, claiming he has rejected every clemency recommendation the board has sent him so far.

“I want to be careful with this, because I know Bob is not going to appreciate being compared to Inslee, but we sent 10 to him as a recommendation to grant clemency, and he’s denied all of them, and some of those were unanimous votes,” Baldwin said in an interview with KOMO. “I would be lying to you if I said that that wasn’t frustrating. It’s very frustrating. Again, you’ve got five people who’ve been appointed to this board who have dedicated their lives to this work, and some of us, rightfully so, would question what is our value on this board now.”

Baldwin, the vice chairperson of Washington’s clemency board, was first appointed in 2022, working alongside Raymond Delos Reyes, Rhonda Salvesen, Kazi Joshua, and Aline Flower. The Clemency and Pardon Board receives petitions from individuals, organizations, and the Department of Corrections for sentence commutations and the pardon of offenders.

“Bob, I’m not stepping down from the board,” the two-time Pro Bowler added.

Gee, Ursula weigh in on Doug’s public outcry

“I’m curious, as you are friends with Doug, you’ve probably had some conversations too about this,” KIRO host Ursula Reutin asked her co-host, Gee Scott.

“First, a disclaimer. When it comes to death penalties and pardons and clemency, I just want you guys to know, I lean very, I would say, very conservative,” Gee said. “I think we all hear the frustration in Doug, and I think Doug’s frustration is, ‘Well, what the hell are we doing?’ Because if we’re a clemency board and we’ve sent you 10 and you’ve denied all 10, including the ones that we were unanimous on, then what are we doing? So I can hear that frustration.”

Baldwin stated that the clemency board deserves more communication from the governor’s office.

Ursula cited two examples of Ferguson denying clemency: When he denied a pardon for a Tacoma man who had finished a 25-year sentence for murder and assault and was facing deportation, and when he canceled the parole of serial rapist Billy Van Cort, overriding a decision that would have allowed his release after four decades in prison. According to the governor’s office, Van Cort had previously absconded from supervision, left the state, and violated parole conditions.

“I get that there needs to be some kind of redemption, but does it have to be for the worst of the worst?” Ursula asked.

“I agree with Bob,” Gee added.

“I mean this whole thing, you get out of jail free, because I’m on my way out. That actually has an impact again on the victims’ families, like they’re victimized over again,” Ursula said. “That’s not to say that there isn’t room for rehabilitation and reform, but I think those have to be kind of the exceptional cases.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.