Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has granted clemency to five people and denied another 235 requests. The governor's office says each person granted clemency has recently undergone a criminal background check. A clemency granted allows a petitioner to go to court to seek expungement of his or her criminal record.
Rauner took office facing a docket of petitions dating to previous administrations. Requests piled up under Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who served from 2003 to 2009.
Rauner says this is the 12th set of petitions he's acted on since taking office last year. There are fewer than 50 remaining in the backlog. This group of clemencies dated back to January 2014.
