Members of the public will be able to make written comments on the clemency application of a former Garnett man convicted in 2006 of molesting the four-year-old daughter of the girlfriend he was living with at the time. Fifty nine-year-old John Rutherford, is serving a 385-month sentence in state prison in El Dorado on convictions of aggravated indecent solicitation a child, aggravated and indecent liberties and aggravated criminal sodomy all of a child under the age of 14, after a conviction in Anderson County District Court. His request for a pardon from the governor was filed in January of this year. Those who would like to submit written comments on Rutherford’s application must do so by May 29th.
An Anderson County jury found Rutherford guilty of molesting the 4-year-old girl, who according to court records had developmental disabilities and functioned at a level similar to a two-year-old or younger. Rutherford baby sat in the household in which he and the mother cohabitated. Court testimony from the Director of Anderson County Head Start reported bruising on the child’s inner thighs, and when asked about the abrasions the child reported that Rutherford had hurt her.
