Nevada Attorney General backs clemency for dozens of violent felons amid governor bid

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford has cast votes to commute or shorten sentences for 30 individuals convicted of murder and other violent crimes, a pattern uncovered in a review of state pardon hearings. Notable cases include Michael Cu, who kidnapped and execution-style killed a 16-year-old in the desert, and Anthony Amati, labeled a "thrill killer" for the ambush murder of a Pizza Hut employee. While some votes, such as the pardon of a contract-killing mastermind exonerated by DNA, received bipartisan backing, many others put Ford at odds with Republican Governor Joe Lombardo.

The Board of Pardons Commissioners—comprising the governor, attorney general and Nevada Supreme Court justices—makes the final determinations, and several of Ford’s supported commutations still require parole board approval. As Ford runs for governor, his clemency record is being used by opponents to question his public-safety stance, even as his campaign emphasizes his broader law-enforcement achievements. The controversy underscores the political stakes of Nevada’s unique pardon process, where the governor cannot act unilaterally.