Better late than never.
Former Broward Sheriff Ken Jenne has been granted clemency, restoring the Florida civil rights he lost in 2007 when he pleaded guilty to federal tax evasion and mail fraud charges after a two-year corruption investigation into his outside business dealings.
Jenne was a former state prosecutor who served in the Florida Senate from 1978 to 1998, missing one term. In 1998 he was elected sheriff, and he served in that role until his resignation in September 2007.
He was sentenced to a year and a day in a federal minimum-security camp.
Jenne said Wednesday that he learned less than a month ago that Gov. Ron DeSantis had agreed to grant his clemency, which covers certain state rights that he lost. Those include the right to pursue some professional licenses, including membership in the Florida Bar.
His right to vote was restored when voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2018.
State officials did not respond to requests for comment about the decision to grant clemency to Jenne, 79, who said Wednesday he has no intention of using the development as a springboard to return to public life.
Jenne said to the best of his memory he had no contact with anyone in the governor’s administration about his clemency application, which he filed after his release during Gov. Charlie Crist’s term. He said he updated his application in the ensuing years as requirements changed, but he heard from no one in government before he received his clemency certificate in the mail in April.
The clemency certificate is dated March 31 and excludes rights Jenne lost under federal law, including the right to own and carry firearms.
Still, Jenne said, the clemency was more than welcome.
“I was as pleased as anyone would be with the news,” he said.
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457. Follow him on Twitter (X) at twitter.com/OlmedaNews.