Boston — Today, Governor Healey recommended six individuals to receive pardons and nominated three attorneys as Associate Justices to the Superior Court. Those being recommended for pardons are Anthony Tindal, David Palazzo, Kira Pareseau, Mynor-Deane Martino Boland, Richard Barnes and Robert Tober. Those being nominated to serve as Associate Justices of the Superior Court are Sarah G. Kim, Ira Gant and Adam Hornstine.
The Governor’s Council will now consider the pardon
recommendations and judicial nominees for confirmation.
“I’m proud to continue our administration’s efforts to use
clemency as a tool to center fairness and equity in our criminal justice system
and help these individuals move forward with their educations, their careers
and their lives,” said Governor Maura Healey. “I'm also pleased to
nominate these three highly qualified attorneys to help uphold the law,
protect freedoms and maintain fairness on the Superior Court. I’m grateful to
the Governor’s Council for their consideration of these recommendations and nominations.”
“I am excited to work with the Governor’s Council to move
these nominations and recommendations forward and ensure that we continue to
have a fair and balanced criminal justice system,” said Lieutenant
Governor Kim Driscoll. “I also want to thank the Advisory Board of Pardons
and the Judicial Nominating Commission for their thoughtful work in moving
these forward and ensuring a thoughtful and intentional process for individuals
to seek justice.”
Governor Healey has now recommended a total of 22
individuals for pardons since taking office. 15 of those pardons have been
approved. She issued more pardons in 2023 than any other Governor in their
first year in the past 40 years. Governor Healey also issued new
clemency guidelines that align with her administration’s
commitment to center fairness and equity in the criminal justice system and
issued a nation-leading
blanket cannabis pardon that impacted thousands of residents.
The Superior Court is a trial court of general jurisdiction
for Massachusetts and is committed to delivering high-quality justice with
dignity and speed. The court's 82 justices sit in 20 courthouses in all 14
state counties. The Superior Court has exclusive original jurisdiction of
first-degree murder cases, and has original jurisdiction of all other crimes,
civil actions over $50,000, matters where parties are seeking equitable relief,
and actions including labor disputes where parties are seeking injunctive
relief. The Superior Court also has exclusive authority to convene medical
malpractice tribunals, has appellate jurisdiction over certain administrative
proceedings, and may hold naturalization sittings in any city or town.
For more information about the Superior Court, visit its
homepage. Governor Healey has previously nominated nine judges to the Superior
Court: Michael
Pineault, Adam
Sisitsky, Tracy Duncan, Sarah
Hamilton, John
Fraser, Keren Goldenberg, Julie Green, Matthew Nestor and Deepika Shukla.
Pardon recommendations:
Anthony Tindal: Mr. Tindal was convicted of
possession with intent to distribute marijuana in 1978 when he was 22 years
old. He had been selling marijuana to financially support himself while he was
in school. Since completing his sentence, he obtained a GED from Springfield
Skills Center and now works in machining and tractor trailing. He is now
retired due to bad knees, a back injury and COPD. He recently was denied
housing because of his criminal record and is seeking a pardon to clear his
name from this more than 40-year-old offense. The Advisory Board unanimously
recommended that Mr. Tindal be granted an unconditional pardon.
David Palazzo: Mr. Palazzo was convicted of
aiding or abetting with the intent to defraud an insurer, possession of a class
B controlled substance and worker’s compensation fraud in the 1980s and 1990s
when he was about 20. Since then, he has worked in public service, helping
people with disabilities find employment, housing and other resources. He has
started a number of recovery programs for people with substance use disorders
and has been involved in the Walk for Autism for two decades. He is also an active
member of his church, where he co-founds a recovery group. He is seeking a
pardon in part to complete his degree in social work and apply for a promotion.
The Advisory Board unanimously recommended that Mr. Palazzo be granted an
unconditional pardon.
Kira Pareseau: Ms. Pareseau was convicted of
misdemeanor larceny, assault and battery and malicious destruction of property
in 1998 and 1999 when she was about 20. At the time, she was suffering from
substance use disorder, anxiety and depression. She has been enrolled in
community college and is hoping to complete her bachelor’s degree at UMass
Lowell. She is seeking a pardon so that she can pursue new educational and work
experiences without a criminal record hanging over her head. She has been a
volunteer for her church and currently works for a security company. The
Advisory Board unanimously recommended that Ms. Pareseau receive a conditional
pardon.
Mynor-Deane Martino Boland: Mr. Boland was
convicted of operating a motor vehicle without a license, Operating Under the
Influence, possession of marijuana, telecommunications fraud, and unlawful
possession of a telecommunication system in 1996 when he was 21 years old. Mr.
Boland is now a is a restaurant owner, a volunteer coach and an active member
of his community. The Advisory Board unanimously recommended that Mr. Boland be
granted an unconditional pardon.
Richard Barnes: Mr. Barnes was convicted of
breaking and entering at night with intent to commit a felony, breaking and
entering in the daytime with intent to commit a felony, and larceny in 1968
when he was 17 years old. He has been a self-employed contractor for 25
years. He is active in his community, volunteering with many organizations
including the Ellinwood Country Club, Athol American Legion Post 102, Athol
YMCA and the Athol-Orange Little League. The Advisory Board unanimously
recommended that Mr. Barnes be granted an unconditional pardon.
Robert Tober: Mr. Tober was convicted of larceny
in 1987 when he was 28 years old. He has since had an extensive career in
public service, including serving in the Army National Guard Reserves, working
in education and local government, and assisting the homeless and those
suffering from substance use disorder. He also opened a food pantry and teaches
Sunday School. Because of this decades-old conviction, he recently lost his job
and has faced barriers advancing in his career. The Advisory Board unanimously
recommended that Mr. Tober be granted an unconditional pardon.
Superior Court Nominees:
Sarah
G. Kim currently serves as a Deputy Treasurer and the General
Counsel for the Office of the Treasurer & Receiver General. As
General Counsel, she advises senior staff on strategic policy, procurement,
employment and litigation issues. She also manages the team that provides
support on various legal issues and handles state retirement benefit matters
before administrative law agencies. She previously served as the interim
Chairperson of the Cannabis Control Commission, and prior to that as an
Assistant Attorney General in the Fraud and Financial Crimes Division at the
Office of the Attorney General in Boston. For a significant part of her
early career, she was an attorney in the Litigation department of Bingham
McCutchen LLP where she litigated civil cases and assisted institutional and
individual clients in responding to federal, state, and self-regulatory
organization investigations related to potential violations of securities
laws. Attorney Kim has also served for several years as the President of
the Asian American Lawyers Association of Massachusetts and Board Chair of the
Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence. She serves on the Board of
Directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and the Board of Directors for
the Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center. Attorney Kim holds a Bachelor of Art
from Dartmouth College and Juris Doctor from Villanova University School of
Law. She lives in Boston.
Ira
Gant serves as the Forensic Services Director for the
Committee for Public Counsel Services where he oversees forensic litigation
support and training for attorneys handling CPCS cases in criminal, juvenile,
care and protection and mental health commitment cases. He also currently sits
on the state Forensic Science Oversight Board and Commission on Medicolegal
Investigation. Attorney Gant previously served as Staff Counsel to the
Innocence Program and a Trial Attorney for the Public Defenders Divisions at CPCS,
where he represented clients in post-conviction litigation in the Superior
Court and the Supreme Judicial Court. Attorney Gant holds a Bachelor of Arts in
English from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Juris Doctor from
Northeastern University School of Law. He lives in Norfolk County.
Adam Hornstine currently
serves as a Deputy Legal Counsel in the Governor’s Office where he
advises on a wide range of legal issues. He is responsible for supervising
the legal departments of secretariats, conducting legal reviews of executive
orders, legislation, regulation and emergency declarations, and advising the
Governor on petitions for pardons and commutations. Mr. Hornstine previously
clerked for the Honorable Patti B. Saris of the U.S. District Court of
Massachusetts before working as a litigation counsel at WilmerHale and
completing a rotation as a Special Assistant District Attorney with the
Middlesex District Attorney’s Office. He also served as an Assistant Attorney
General in the Trial Division and Managing Attorney of the Constitutional and
Administrative Law Division for the Attorney General’s Office. Mr. Hornstine
holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Harvard University and Juris Doctor
from Harvard Law School and currently teaches political science at the
University of Massachusetts, Boston. He resides in Cambridge with his wife and
two children.
