Attorney General Fought For Edmond Soldier's Presidential Pardon

President Trump pardoned the former Army lieutenant and Edmond native Michael Behenna Monday afternoon. Behenna was convicted of killing of an Iraqi man while serving in Iraq. Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter took up the fight for Behenna shortly aft

Tuesday, May 7th 2019, 7:12 pm



President Trump pardoned the former Army lieutenant and Edmond native Michael Behenna Monday afternoon. Behenna was convicted of killing of an Iraqi man while serving in Iraq. 

Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter took up the fight for Behenna shortly after he took office. He sent a number of letters to the president, the last one on April 15, 2019. 

Behenna's return to Edmond after being paroled back in 2014 was a time of relief and joy. However, according to AG Hunter, it was also possibly the thing standing in the way between him and a full pardon.

Read Related Story: President Pardons Edmond Soldier Convicted Of Murder

“It’s a project we worked on a great deal here in the office,” said Hunter Tuesday. “We had some of our best lawyers on this.”

Behenna was convicted of killing a suspected Al-Quaida member while serving in Iraq. He says he shot the man in self-defense. 

AG Hunter says there were numerous mistakes made in Behenna's trial. However, he later learned his legal brief on the matter was in the hands of the Justice Department, not the White House. That’s because the Justice Department reviews pardon cases of people currently under parole.

Last month, Hunter wrote another letter to the Justice Department and sent a copy to President Trump.

Behenna has been living in Guthrie since he was paroled.

 

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