The decisions have drawn concern from some board members and advocates, who say the governor has offered little explanation for denying requests. Ferguson says clemency decisions are among the most difficult he makes, and his office has pointed to cases involving serious violence and opposition from victims or prosecutors.

Washington is one of 16 states without parole, leaving executive clemency among the limited options for people serving long sentences to seek release before their terms end. A commutation shortens a sentence but does not erase a criminal record. A pardon generally applies after a person has completed a sentence and clears the record.

Claude Price, now 56, is one of those still in prison after a unanimous board recommendation. At a two-hour hearing, he apologized for crimes committed in 1997, discussed his childhood abuse and described years of work to change his behavior. One of his victims, Alita Carey, told the board the crime left her with lasting fear. The panel recommended that Price be released early; Ferguson denied the request.

Price was convicted of theft, assault and four counts of attempted murder after stealing vehicles and firing at witnesses who followed him. No one was struck by the gunfire. His original 101-year sentence was later reduced to 95 years. He is not scheduled for release until 2092, at age 122, unless a future clemency decision changes that outcome.

In prison, Price has been sober and has spent years mentoring others, making beadwork and crocheting hats for children. His wife, Ronelle, said she believes he has been rehabilitated. The governor’s office said the prosecutor and victims opposed Price’s commutation and that the board’s recommendation would have had him released in 2031, after completing one of four consecutive sentences for attempted murder.

Ferguson’s denial letter said “the interests of justice do not require a commutation of the sentence at this time.” Kathryn Karcher, Price’s clemency attorney, said that wording does not explain why the governor chose not to grant clemency. The same language appeared in a denial for Tomas Keen, another person whose commutation the board unanimously recommended.

Keen, 37, has served 16 years after stealing a car and shooting at a witness. In prison, he earned a college degree and paralegal certificate, taught and mentored other incarcerated people, and received a PEN America award for prison writing. Neither his victims nor the local prosecutor opposed his release, according to the account of his case. His wife, Joelene, said the family received no explanation beyond the governor’s statement about the interests of justice.

The contrast with former Gov. Jay Inslee is sharp. A review of records found Inslee followed the board’s clemency recommendations 94% of the time during his 12 years in office, including some commutations the panel had not recommended. Inslee said he weighed the risk of reoffending against applicants’ prospects for success outside prison. He said that among nearly 200 people granted clemency after applying and appearing before the board, one later committed a serious crime; that person pleaded guilty to a drug-trafficking conspiracy last year.

Ferguson has followed some recommendations for pardons. He granted 13 of the board’s 33 recommended pardons, all for people who had completed their sentences and were already out of prison. Overall, he has adopted 27% of the board’s recommendations, according to the figures reported.

The Legislature established the five-member board in 1981. State law directs it to recommend pardons in extraordinary circumstances and commutations when a sentence no longer serves the interests of justice. The board hears applications from people who have served at least 10 years and exhausted their appeals; it receives about 100 petitions annually and typically holds hearings on roughly half.

A law passed in 2025 with Ferguson’s support authorized expanding the board to 10 members and adding staff so it could consider more cases. The expansion was expected to cost about $600,000 a year, before any potential savings from reduced prison populations. Ferguson has not appointed the five additional members. His office said the Legislature did not provide funding and that the governor plans to fill the positions when the state’s budget situation stabilizes.

Aline Flower, a board member appointed by Inslee, said the panel has not received an explanation from Ferguson for the repeated rejections. She questioned what role the board can play if its recommendations are routinely set aside. Jennie Pasquarella, director of the Seattle Clemency Project, said the pattern appears to reflect political calculation.

Price said the hearing was meaningful even though he remained incarcerated. His daughter, who had been estranged from him, watched the proceeding and reconnected; he said they now speak nearly every day. He acknowledged the political risk Ferguson faces if someone released through clemency commits another crime, but said the process gave him a chance to be heard and recognized for the changes he has made.