US parole commissioner: Pollard waives hearing

Prisoner, who has been behind bars since 1985, said to be up for release under deal to extend Israeli-Palestinian talks

Jonathan Pollard (screenshot: YouTube)
Jonathan Pollard (screenshot: YouTube)

WASHINGTON — A member of the US Parole Commission said convicted spy Jonathan Pollard waived a planned parole hearing.

Commissioner Patricia Smoot said the hearing had been scheduled for Tuesday.

A parole commission administrator, Stephen Husk, said the hearing was to have been held at the prison in Butner, North Carolina, and that Pollard, who is imprisoned there, would have attended. Husk declined further comment.

Waiving the parole hearing comes amid diplomatic discussions between the US and Israel about Pollard’s possible release to further Mideast peace talks. The possibility of parole was the latest legal avenue Pollard had been taking in an effort to win his freedom.

The 59-year-old Pollard repeatedly sought executive clemency from Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush but was denied. He has been imprisoned since 1985.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.

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