Gov. Reeves issues first executive clemency, orders release of inmate serving “illegal” sentence
JACKSON, Miss. – Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves has exercised his constitutional authority to grant executive clemency for the first time since taking office in 2020, ordering the release of a man imprisoned for over a decade on a sentence that legally should have been capped][ at five years.
On Wednesday, Reeves signed Executive Order 1590, commuting the sentence of 43-year-old Marcus Taylor to time served. The order directs the Mississippi Department of Corrections to release Taylor within five days, correcting what the Governor termed a clear “miscarriage of justice.”
A Decade-Long Legal Error
The case centers on a significant sentencing error originating in Choctaw County. In February 2015, Taylor pled guilty to conspiracy to sell a Schedule III controlled substance, specifically Hydrocodone Acetaminophen.
Despite the fact that Mississippi Code § 97-1-1 set the maximum penalty for this charge at five years, Taylor was sentenced to 15 years in prison. This sentence was recommended by the state and accepted by the trial judge, partially due to Taylor’s indictment as a “nonviolent habitual offender.”
However, legal reviews later confirmed that the habitual offender status did not override the statutory maximum for the specific conspiracy charge. All 10 members of the Mississippi Court of Appeals recently agreed that the 15-year term was statutorily impossible and illegal.
“Justice, Not Mercy”
By the time Governor Reeves intervened, Taylor had already served more than 10 years in state custody—double the maximum lawful sentence for his crime.
In a statement accompanying the order, Governor Reeves emphasized that this decision was not an act of forgiveness, but a necessary correction to uphold the rule of law.
“This is about justice, not mercy,” Governor Reeves said. “Mr. Taylor has served the entire five-year sentence for the crime to which he pled guilty. Respect for the rule of law and protecting every Mississippian’s right to individual liberty and self-determination are the bedrock principles upon which our Constitutional Republic and state were founded.”
Who is Marcus Taylor?
Marcus Taylor, a husband and father, has been the subject of advocacy efforts by his family, including his wife, Kimberly Brown Taylor. While his legal record included prior offenses that led to the habitual offender enhancement, the Governor’s office noted that keeping him imprisoned beyond the statutory maximum for the 2015 conviction would violate fundamental rights.
“If justice is denied to one Mississippian, it is denied to us all,” Reeves stated.
The commutation to “time served” ensures Taylor’s immediate processing for release, closing a chapter that the state’s highest executive has officially recognized as a failure of the judicial process.
