Arkansas governor says he will pardon his son

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe (D) has said he will pardon his son, Kyle, for a 2003 felony crime.

Kyle Beebe was charged in 2003 with possession of a controlled substance, marijuana, with intent to deliver. He received three years supervised probation and fines for this class C felony. At the time, Mike Beebe was the state attorney general, and said, "If he broke the law, he needs to pay for it. He needs to be treated like everybody else - no better, worse."

Mike Beebe has pardoned more than 700 people, he told KATV, with most non-violent offenders. He said he would have pardoned Kyle sooner had he asked, "but he took his sweet time about asking. He was embarrassed. He's still embarrassed."

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Kyle Beebe is now 34 years old, and wrote in his petition that he was "living in a fantasy world" and tried to fill the emptiness he felt by selling drugs. "I am asking for a second chance to be a better son to my parents and prove to them that I am the person they raised me to be," he said. A spokesman for the Arkansas Parole Board Board told KATV that Kyle Beebe did not receive any special treatment, and his application is under consideration.