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Family's pleas don't sway clemency committee

By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published January 25, 2006

INVERNESS - A clemency review committee has denied a petition by Adam Bollenback, a 20-year-old Citrus County man serving 10 years in prison for stealing a six-pack of beer from a neighbor's garage and then escaping from law officers.

Bollenback's petition was denied Jan. 3, a spokeswoman for the Florida Parole Commission said.

The man's grandfather, John McCain, who lives in Citrus Springs, had pleaded with the committee to consider clemency for Bollenback. In December, he and other family members were told it would take six to eight months for a decision, he said, so he was bewildered by the committee's decision.

"I was shocked, I was stunned by it," he said. "It's unbelievable that a boy steals a six-pack of beer and gets 10 years in prison."

In 2002, Bollenback was sentenced to a decade in prison by Circuit Judge Ric Howard. The sentence sparked criticism of the judge from the community, particularly from the National Alliance for Mental Illness of Citrus County.

Bollenback's relatives and supporters think Howard ignored the boy's mental illness. At the time of the incident, the boy had not taken his medication, his family said.

The family said it brought the committee 300 letters from Citrus residents who have written in recent weeks, all calling for Bollenback's release. Apparently, the letters and the family's pleadings weren't enough to secure a hearing from the Board of Executive Clemency.

McCain said the decision did not come with an explanation. He said a Bollenback supporter called the commission to try to determine the reason for the decision, but he was told that information would not be disclosed.

Now, the family is trying to figure out what, if anything, to do, McCain said.

"It doesn't make any sense for them to not have a hearing for the kid," he said. "What harm is there in having a hearing?"

Family members and supporters plan to meet next week to discuss their options, he said.

Bollenback's mother, Cheryl Bollenback Bailey, told her son of the committee's decision, McCain said.

"He seems to be taking it pretty good," McCain said.

He called his grandson "polite and friendly."

Abbie VanSickle can be reached at 860-7312 or vansickle@sptimes.com

[Last modified January 25, 2006, 00:55:16]