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Justice Department Not Supporting Pardon Bid For Boxer Jack Johnson

Written by Associated Press on December 11, 2009 2:05 pm

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WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is not supporting a bid to pardon Jack Johnson, the black heavyweight boxing champion who was imprisoned nearly a century ago because of his romantic ties with a white woman.

The department’s pardon attorney, Ronald L. Rodgers, tells Rep. Peter King in a letter that DOJ general policy is not to process posthumous pardon requests. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the letter Thursday.

Rodgers writes that the department’s resources for pardon requests are best used on behalf of people “who can truly benefit” from them. King, a New York Republican, sponsored a congressional resolution which urged President Barack Obama to pardon Johnson.

Rodgers noted that Obama still has the authority to pardon whomever he wishes.

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Tags: Jack Johnson, Justice Department
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  • http://www.blackplanet.com/MR_NANASTROKER/ MR_NANASTROKER

    LMAO

    old Jack was a muthafuka

    He whupped white boys ass…..fuked white girls…..rofe through the SOUTH IN HIS CAR WITH 6-8 WHITE WOMEN…..damn near killed A Cop 4 fukin with him…..he whupped dumb ass nlggers they thought was brute enuff 2 whup on him

    this Negus whupped ass when he was in his 40′s…..50′s….and 60′s
    U kno thats hard 2 pardon them kinda asswhuppins he handed out on a daily

  • http://www.blackplanet.com/Charmed2Def/ Charmed2Def

    Pardon him… and yes this dude is one of the baddest there’s ever been…. some pundits rate him above Ali himself.

  • http://www.blackplanet.com/jazzwatch/ jazzwatch

    If this happened today, it would hardley matter except no White man would try to assasinate him after the Jess Willard rematch in 1919. He was badder than ANY boxer you care to name…he fought in 26 round matches back in the day…..now who who could withstand all that sweating, running, punching today in 26 rounds?….I cannot think of a sole….

  • http://www.blackplanet.com/jazzwatch/ jazzwatch

    He might had not been the best man to use good judgemebt in his life (like Tiger),but it was NEVER proved that he did commit the Mann act. so he deserves the pardon….another way to keep a Black man down and discredit his place in history. I’m not saying he was a hero(Joe Louis, Ali and Sugar ray Robinson was), but he was a victum of a brutal caste system that smelled pretty bad (and sometimes still do today) back in the day…..

  • http://www.blackplanet.com/TiredMan/ TiredMan

    That’s why I don’t like prosecutors…just like fundamentalist Christians, even when the evidence is stacked against them, they won’t admit they’re wrong. ;)

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