PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Pennsylvania Lt. Governor John Fetterman released a study he says shows that life without parole isn’t justified in cases of second-degree murder.
The study comes as Gov. Tom Wolf commuted the life sentences of 13 Pennsylvania inmates on Friday. Among them was 71-year-old Charles Goldblum of Pittsburgh. He was convicted of stabbing a man to death, but lingering questions remain about his guilt or innocence.
READ MORE: Trump-Backed Candidate Bob Paduchik Tapped To Head Ohio Republican Party
(Photo Credit: KDKA)
Fetterman says it serves no purpose for Goldblum to remain behind bars.
“When someone served 45 years of their lives, he was wheelchair-bound when interviewed,” Fetterman said. “He’s not a threat to public safety. At that point, when does justice become vengeance?”
READ MORE: Police Arrest Man Accused Of Shooting Neighbor In The Arm After DisputeWhile the lieutenant governor favors life for first-degree cases, he says second-degree cases are clogging our prisons with aging inmates and costing millions of dollars.
“We have freed individuals whose crime was being an 18-year-old sitting in a getaway car, having no idea what was going on inside. We freed a man who did 51 years and he never took a life,” Fetterman said.
MORE NEWS: Pittsburgh Weather: Heavy Rainfall, Flood Watches And Warnings IssuedFetterman chairs the state’s Board of Pardons. He’s a candidate for U.S. Senate in 2022.
