PITTSBURGH — A man who has spent more than 40 years in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder has been pardoned by Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf.
Robert Wideman was charged as an accomplice in the death of Nicholas Morena during a robbery gone wrong. He did not pull the trigger.
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Wideman was convicted of second-degree felony murder in 1976. His sentence was life in prison without parole.
Several weeks ago, the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons voted unanimously for Wideman to receive clemency in his second-degree murder conviction.
The decision of a pardon was made Tuesday by Wolf.
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A spokesperson for Wolf’s office released the following statement:
"Governor Wolf has accepted the unanimous Board of Pardons recommendation and granted Robert D. Wideman's commutation. The Board found that Mr. Wideman used his time in prison productively and largely without incident, accepts responsibility for his actions and exhibits great remorse for the victim."
Morena's family did not want Wideman to receive clemency, and Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala agreed, sending a letter to the parole board against it.
Wideman will be released from prison to a Community Corrections Center, where he must go, by law, for a year. After that, he will be on parole for the remainder of his sentence.
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