Congressman Candidate Urges Governor Jay Nixon to Grant Clemency For Sedalia Man

According to Irvin, "Jeff Mizanskey received a sentence that was disproportionate to his crime. He is a model inmate who has been successfully rehabilitated, and the prosecutor who put him away now supports his release. Missouri taxpayers will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars imprisoning a rehabilitated, non-violent great-grandfather for the rest of his life, instead of allowing him to become a taxpaying, productive member of society. Imprisoning non-violent marijuana offenders for life is truly big government at its worst, and I'm sure Representative Hartzler will join my call for Governor Nixon to immediately grant clemency."

Mizanskey has filed a formal petition with Governor Nixon asking him to grant clemency, as he has exhausted all other options for appealing his sentence. His request for clemency is based on the nature of his previous offenses, and the fact he has already served nearly 21 years in prison for cannabis. None of Mizanskey's convictions involve weapons, children, or violence; all three were for non-violent marijuana-only offenses.

Jeff Mizanskey was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 1994 based on Missouri's prior and persistent drug offender law. Earlier this year, the Missouri legislature made revisions to the state's criminal code that included removing the provision that was used to sentence Mizanskey to life without parole. Nixon has not commented on whether he might approve Jeff's petition for clemency. Mizanskey is the only person in Missouri serving life without parole for only non-violent marijuana offenses