OFFICE OF THE A’HORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

Hon. W. Y. Ikid 

Warden Texas Prlmn 8yStSa 

XunteriLla,T.u‘ 

retJU66tiBlg the OpiniOR Of thl 

0a6 BenJu5.n ibl1ing6, prior 

regi6teP W16ber 66886. 

XQW letter 

oonvlotlon 0 

onsd tit0 rho -6 

l?th under a new 

der wtthatrt tkllae 

Bur&a of bOOE'd6 mnd Identtfloatlon. 

PebrurrP 20th 1 requested an apiaion 

6 Of this ~Z'iSOfl82' fM6! the B0U.d Of 

en& haYe at hand ttwlr letter of 

ing a6 to submit the wtter to you. 

Kindly &v166 at JOUr eOnVenieUOe Wb%etbbr the ObWnar 

in qu66tion 616~ be cotistru~d a8 8 %il Pardon. The rubjeat 

L-tie i6 now 6la66ified a6 a Conditton*r Pardon violator 

and &6 regirt6red under hi6 hid n~m?Mr 64#?246 66ZTing the 

bdanoe or hi6 I(lartpHtn6 pii@ term. li this i6 iWtWMOt, 

he wU1 be plaiM bask U&6r l new number aid reg&stmr6d 

a6 sanlng the new oonvlatlon sf three (3) years.* 

78 
Xon. W. W. WalLI, page 2 

The exooutlve proolam6tion granting pardon for th6 

ftr6t murder oonviotlon is aondltlonal end provider; 

"TO ALL TO WXOU TFIEEE PRliXEiNTS SHALL COME: 

*WHE~AS, At the Hay Term, A. D., 1919 in the Dt6trlot 

Court of Van Zandt County, Texas, -----------------------. 

BENJAUIW ROLLING9 843,724 

-6 aonrloted of a felony, towlt: M u R D E R and hl6 

punlrhment 8666666d at 6OnfinOmSnt in the Penitentiary 

for Ninety-nine year68 and 

"This dafrndant I6 panted a pardon aondltloned that 

a6 long a6 he reo6lver &15.00 per month, hi6 board and 

lodging and is treated humanely he remain in the personal 

employ Ot 2X-@Ot@X'Wl- Jam66 6. F6r@l60tl, fOI' 6%X year6 

from the date hereof mnd und6r his rdr~or and dlreotion. 

'IN TESTIMONY ~WHEREOI, I have hereunto 

rigwd my ma6 offlolally and amused th6 

Seal af State to b6 irplu66ed hereon at 

f6;lni9;16 the 1Qth day of January, 

. 0, . 

/d llrJ,@m A. Ferqu~8 

Oorernor 0r Mu6 

" BX THIS GOVEiWOR: 

Ld - wK#&LSeoretary of State 

---_-- ------.-...--- 

@I, Benjamin flolllnge, the above do6orlbed. freely 

mooopt the abovr pardon and oondltlon therein mentioned. 

The rule i6 that in case of doubt nondltionol pardon6 

as6 to be conetrued most f6vorebly to the grantee and against 

the sovereign. 06born v. United States, 91 U. 3. 474, 23 L. Ed. 

388; 20 R. c. L. 662. Wlth this in mind we lRt6rpret the pardon 

grhnt6d B6nJamln Holllngs, dated Jan. 12, 1927, to be aondltlonal 

solely that he remain In the personal employ and under the advioe 

an8 dl.reotl.on of Ja6. E. Fergu6On lor a period 0r 61x years froa 

the 12th day of January, 1.8271 and that this be n6oersary only 

ln the event that n6 receives th6 6um of 81s. psr month, his 
Hon. W. W. Uaid, pagr 3 

board and lodging and ir treated humanely by 6uQh l wloy6r. 

We Interpret thlr to be a oonaltlon preoeaent and lf tu6 

ocndltLon va6 ratlsfird - there be%ng L1o other - the pardon 

beaan6 irrevooable on the 12th day of January, 19X3. 

The oonditions attaahed to a par&on are di6aretk.o~ 

vlth tim rxeautlve - the only rrqulmmnt being that they be 

nbt %llo al or immor& Ex arte Dawnport, 110 Tex. Or. Rep. zH?b, 

9 LU. f2d) 589, 60.A.L.B. !40$. In order to k oparatlvrr, bov6ver, th#$Prmilt app6ar ln the padOn. Ii% 

27 Adi Rap. 337~ Annotation6, 60 A.L.R. p" 

rte Reno, 66 no. Q66 

7+n. Oas. 88. 

14 6, 111 Am. 6t. R6p.10&, 

A OOndltlOMl pardon, be it upon OOndltlOn6 prewdent 

OX' 6Ub66qU6Klt ,bWO6le6 8brOhte UpOn th6 iulfll%WRt Of it8 

aonditionr. barr Q. State, 19 Or. App. 666, 66 Au. Rop. 606. 

It oannot be revoked aftor it b6 been delivered and l ooeptod 

and th6 grantee ha6 faithfully perforwd the cwmdktlon8. !Cx pu‘te 

Mae, 72 Or. F&p. 687 162 5. U. 801; ti parto hra616C, 91 Qr. 

Rep. 476, QSQ 8. Y. oi2. 

In the m Q16. th6 OOUCt 6aibl 

%nder all the autboritle6 w6 have b6en able k, rind, 

the rule 16 that uhen the Governor ha6 i66UOd 6n onoonaitlorurl pardon, and it ,S6 aooepted by the prlronen, &nd 

he 16 relea6sd thexwunder, all power and oantrol &OS, 

th6 prl6oner 3.6 gonei The Uovemor has no authority to 

revoke an onoondltional pUaon liter ito 186U11160, drltvery, 

and aooeptanee. 

pA oonditlonal pardon I6 a6 ab6olUte an not UpOn ths 

aondltloqs named theroln as 8.; an unoonditlonal pardon. 

It oan be revoked and annuled only upon a violatfon of 

the conditions $h6 &QOrnOf h66 ~6eOR f&t to tarart thereln. 

Upon a vlolatlon of the aondttlonr, th6 .right of cevooatloa 

at onae arlresj but Zf the awdltlono are not vlolat8d, the 

rlgat to annul 8066 not exi6t. This right 6prlngr lnto 

exlrtenoe oolnolaent wLth the violation of the oond%tlonr, 

or either of them, nawd in th6 aondttlotml pardon.‘ 
Bon. W. ii. Uald, page 4 

On motion for rehearing the court aontlnued: 

“And If the Oovernor Is not granted the authorlt? 

and power to revoke an unconditional pardon at hi8 

pleasure by the Constitution - and this certainly no 

one can contek - then the right to revoke a oonditional 

pardon comes, riot from en7 power oonferred h$on him br 

the Conatitutlon and laws of the State, but by reason 

of the aondltionr placed In the pardon, and solely from 

that aourae.” 

Aollingsl pardon was not condltloned that he aalataln 

go@d behavior or that he refrain from oommlttlng further orlne. 

The only requirement was that ha remain In the employ of James E. 

Fsrguson for alx yeare lf he reoelved proper treatment and pay. 

File pardon could be.reroked by the oorernor for rlolatlon of 

thla -- and only this -- condltlon. We are lnfomed by the executive department that It has not been BO revoked.’ 

lot having been revoked, It le our opinion that you have 

no authority to claeelfy Hollinga aa a conditional pardon violator 

and plaae him under his old number. He should be glron a new 

number for his new conviction until exeoutlve rotIon la taken 

revoking his pardon-it being eatabllshed that he has violated, 

Uurlng the six year period mentioned, aope oondltlon stated therein. 

The foregoing oonaluslon makes it unnece#sar~ for ua 

to pass upon the question a8 to whether the oondltlonal pardon 

inyolved mar now be considered a full pardon. 

Very truly your8 

SDS: JE