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Announced he would not sign any execution warrants during his term as Governor and called on the General Assembly to abolish the death penalty.
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For the first time in Pennsylvania history, the Governor secured funding for indigent defense, ensuring public defenders have the resources they need to provide legal representation to every Pennsylvanian.
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Opposed mandatory sentences of life in prison without parole for second degree murder.
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Supported the federal proposal to reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III.
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Signed the Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act into law, which reformed the way women were treated in prison.
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Signed the bipartisan Comprehensive Probation Reform legislation to ensure every person on probation will receive a probation review after two or four years and that minor technical violations will no longer result in a return to prison.
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Signed the bipartisan amended Clean Slate legislation to ensure Pennsylvanians who receive a pardon will get their criminal records cleared automatically.
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Awarded $14.5 million through the Department of Labor & Industry to support 10 re-entry programs across Pennsylvania.
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Lt. Governor Austin Davis and the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency awarded $1.34 million through the First Chance Trust Fund Program to implement scholarship programs that benefit at-risk students in communities with prominent incarceration and dropout rates.
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Secured state funding to support a new unit within the Department of Corrections to allow the department to address backlogs in the pardons process.
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As chair of the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons, Lt. Governor Austin Davis spearheaded changes to the pardon application process, expanding eligibility to the expedited review process to applicants with non-violent offenses.
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Under Lt. Governor Austin Davis, the Board of Pardons recommended 390 pardons, doubling the number of recommendations from 2022.