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In Illinois, to regain a certifiably clean record and collect compensation — a lump payment of $60,150 for five years or less in prison, or $120,300 for six to 14 years — an exonerated inmate must obtain a “pardon based on innocence” from the governor. A 15-member state review board interviews the petitioners and makes a recommendation, but the governor is not obligated to make a decision.
Tabitha Pollock was sent to prison after her boyfriend killed her daughter while Pollock was sleeping. She got a first-degree murder conviction because “prosecutors believed she should have known of the danger.” She spent six years in prison before the state supreme court threw out the conviction, and she’s spent the five years since “free,” but technically still a felon, which means she can’t be a teacher. For that, you need a pardon from the governor. Who is, of course, Rod Blagojevich. Eric Zorn explains how that works.
