Sen. Rubio Requests Pardon For Groveland 4
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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/AP) - Senator Marco Rubio is adding his name to the list seeking a pardon for the so-called Groveland 4, four young African-American men who were wrongly accused of raping a white woman nearly 70 years ago.
On Tuesday, the Republican congressman made the request on the floor of the Senate. The move is significant because Governor Rick Scott and other Republicans on the state clemency board have refused to take up the pardon request.
Scott was elected last month to the U.S. Senate and will soon join Rubio in Washington, D.C.
Florida's incoming agriculture commissioner, Nikki Fried, has already pledged to push for a posthumous pardon of Earnest Thomas, Charles Greenlee, Samuel Shepherd, and Walter Irvin.
Rubio said what happened to the four men was a "horrifying injustice" and still haunts Florida to this day.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)