( Covington, Kentucky ) - He was an ardent supporter of Governor Matt Bevin's reelection, and Kenton County Commonwealth Attorney Rob Sanders says he now regrets it.
Sanders was on with 700WLW's Bill Cunningham on Friday to decry the hundreds of pardons Bevin granted to prisoners just before he left office. Of the more than 400 pardons, several of them were for violent offenders. One was Micah Schoettle, convicted in Kenton County in 2018 of raping a 9-year-old.
"The rapists and murderers and child molesters that have been set loose from our prisons... [I'm] disgusted at the fact that Kentucky is a much more dangerous place than it was a week ago," Sanders said.
Two Democratic state lawmakers are calling for an investigation into the pardons. Senator Morgan McGarvey and Representative Chris Harris are asking the attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor. The lawmakers are particularly concerned about the pardon of Patrick Brian Baker, who was convicted of reckless homicide in a home invasion. Baker's family held a fundraiser for Governor Bevin.
Sanders says his office is investigating already, and he believes there could be a similar "money trail" in the Kenton County case.
Hear Sanders entire interview with Bill Cunningham here.
Newly-elected Attorney General Daniel Cameron -- a Republican -- issued a statement saying "the pardon power should be used sparingly and only after great deliberation with due regard to public safety."