Retiring Lawmaker Makes Final Pitch for ‘Second Chances’ Bill

(Des Moines, IA) — A Republican lawmaker who is not seeking re-election is urging colleagues who’ll return next year to make another try at passing a “Second Chances” bill. State Representative Terry Baxter of Garner says the bill would establish a list of guidelines for when Iowa governors have the power to release inmates who’ve been sentenced to life in prison. He told the chamber, “The ‘Good Book’ teaches that government needs both justice and mercy — Iowa needs a comprehensive pathway to commute just a handful of (sentences for) those who’ve made a big difference in their life and done significant things to change.” Iowa governors have the general authority to commute or shorten, life sentences, but rarely do. Baxter, who is an ordained minister, considers the “Second Chances” bill a piece of unfinished business as he ends his eight-year career in the Iowa House.