Baker Commutates Sentences Of Two Convicted Murderers

MASSACHUSETTS — Two men serving life sentences for murder were granted commutation requests to lessen their sentences by Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday.

Baker approved the clemency pleas of William Allen and Thomas Koonce, two men who have already served almost 30 years of their life sentences without parole.

This is the first time in 25 years that a Massachusetts governor has reduced a life sentence, and the first time Baker has approved of such.

The State Advisory Board of Pardons had unanimously recommended to Baker last year that he commute their sentences from first- to second-degree murder, making them eligible for parole.

Last year, the state Advisory Board of Pardons and Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz unanimously recommended lessening the murder sentences of both men from first to second-degree murder, allowing them to be eligible for parole during commutation hearings held in January and June.

Baker says he spent a long time on his decision, looking into both outcomes of lessening sentences or choosing not to before affirming his decision Wednesday.

"There are few things as important to me in this position as ensuring justice is served for the individuals impacted by a crime and my responsibility to ensure fair application of justice to all," he added.

Before anything can be further done, the Governor's Council must approve of Baker's decisions.

Allen, now 48, was with a friend in 1994 who planned to rob a drug dealer, but the robbery instead ended with the drug dealer being stabbed to death.

Allen was charged with the felony murder of Purvis Bester and armed robbery as a result of being a joint venture. He admitted to participating in the armed robbery before the murder but wasn't even in the room when Bester was killed.

The man who did murder Bester, Roland Perry, took a plea deal and was released from prison 12 years ago, but Allen remains behind bars.

Koonce, now 54, was 20 years old and a former marine when he shot and killed 24-year-old Mark J. Santos, of New Bedford in 1987.

Through court records, Koonce has maintained that he meant to fire a warning shot in the air, never to actually hit Santos when two groups from New Bedford and Brockton began fighting.

He is serving a life sentence for first-degree murder with no chance of parole. His sentence started on Dec. 21, 1991.

The State Advisory Board of Pardons sent a request to Baker back in January 2021, agreeing that Koonce's life sentence without the possibility of parole should be commuted from first-degree murder to second-degree murder, WBUR reported.

"I believe both men, having taken responsibility for their actions and paid their debt to the Commonwealth by serving sentences longer than most individuals found guilty of similar actions, deserve the right to seek parole from prison," Baker said.

In Feb. 2020, Baker issued guidelines for commuting a sentence. In order to be considered, the convicted criminal must have fulfilled certain requirements: having accepted responsibility for the offense, made strides in self-development and self-improvement, must have participated in Restorative Justice programs, and would now be a law-abiding citizen.

A member of the Governor's Council, Terrence Kennedy was reported by the Boston Globe to have visited Allen and Koonce in prison, saying both men have made extensive strides and done "extraordinary things while in jail," adding that "they've earned the opportunity to be free," the Globe said.

In April, New England Patriot's safety player Devin McCourty showed his support for Allen's commutation by lending his voice to Second Chance for William Allen, an organization to help his commutation, organized by Brockton Interfaith's Second Chance Justice initiative.

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