Matter of Application of Wilson

It appears from the petition that petitioner was, in the month of June, 1902, convicted of the crime of robbery and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for the term of his natural life, in the state prison at Folsom; that, on March 19, 1909, the Governor of the state commuted the sentence “from the serving of his natural life, to serve 6 years, 9 months and 3 days, or from June 16, 1902, to March 29, 1909”; that the order of commutation of said sentence contains the following provision: “Now, therefore, I, J. N. Gillett, governor of the state of California, ... do hereby commute the sentence of the said Frank S. Wilson . . . provided that if said Frank S. Wilson shall thereafter be convicted of any felony, this commutation shall become void, and in addition to the sentence imposed for such felony, he shall serve the remainder of the sentence cut short by this order.”

By section 1, article VII, of the constitution, “The Governor shall have the .power to grant reprieves, pardons, and commutations of sentence, after conviction, for all offenses except treason and cases of impeachment, upon such conditions and with such restrictions and limitations, as he may think proper. ’ ’ It was…