Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
No-Go for Joe Exotic: Trump Pardon List Omits 'Tiger King'
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 3 years ago on
January 20, 2021

Share

OKLAHOMA CITY — One name missing in President Donald Trump’s flurry of pardons is “Tiger King” Joe Exotic.

His team was so confident in a pardon that they had readied a celebratory limousine and a hair and wardrobe team to whisk away the zookeeper-turned-reality-TV-star, who is serving a 22-year federal prison sentence in Texas. But he wasn’t on the list announced Wednesday morning.

Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in federal prison for violating federal wildlife laws and for his role in a failed murder-for-hire plot targeting his chief rival, Carole Baskin, who runs a rescue sanctuary for big cats in Florida. Baskin was not harmed.

Maldonado-Passage, who has maintained his innocence, was also sentenced for killing five tigers, selling tiger cubs and falsifying wildlife records. A jury convicted him in April 2019.

In his pardon application filed in September, Maldonado-Passage’s attorneys argued that he was “railroaded and betrayed” by others. Maldonado-Passage, 57, is scheduled to be released from custody in 2037, but his attorneys said in the application that “he will likely die in prison” because of health concerns.

Maldonado-Passage’s backers, who referred to themselves as “Team Tiger,” said in a statement Wednesday that “140 million Joe Exotic fans had a hard time getting out of bed this morning.”

“We are as disappointed that the president did not sign Joe’s pardon, as we were confident yesterday that he would,” the statement said.

The blond mullet-wearing zookeeper, known for his expletive-laden rants on YouTube and a failed 2018 Oklahoma gubernatorial campaign, was prominently featured in the popular Netflix documentary “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.”

DON'T MISS

California Legislation Wants to Uncover the ‘Hidden Homicides’ of Domestic Violence

DON'T MISS

The Summer After Barbenheimer and the Strikes, Hollywood Charts a New Course

DON'T MISS

Fresno Oops? Garbage Hike Protest Vote Delayed by Error

DON'T MISS

Trump’s Potential VP Pick Boasts About Executing Puppy

DON'T MISS

Trita Parsi: Blind Support for Israel Erodes Western Democracies

DON'T MISS

Fresno Trash Hauler’s Response to Overpayments: We Followed the City’s Rules

DON'T MISS

Which Six QBs Were Selected in the Top 12 of the NFL Draft?

DON'T MISS

Nuggets Close to Sweeping Lakers After Game 3 Win

DON'T MISS

Jose Ramirez: ‘I Want to Make a Statement and Put on a Show’

DON'T MISS

‘IDEA’ Is the Latest Career-Oriented Campus on Fresno Unified’s Drawing Board

UP NEXT

Jose Ramirez Bout, Clovis Rodeo Are Center Stage in a Weekend Crammed With Events

UP NEXT

Kate Hudson Had a Lifetime to Make a Record. The Result is ‘Glorious,’ Out in May

UP NEXT

Long-Lost First Model of USS Enterprise from ‘Star Trek’ Boldly Goes Home

UP NEXT

How 4/20 Grew From Humble Roots to Marijuana’s High Holiday

UP NEXT

Taylor Swift Drops 15 New Songs on Double Album, ‘The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology’

UP NEXT

Savannah Bananas Dominate Social Media, Sell Out Stadiums Nationwide Including Fresno

UP NEXT

Big Names in Rap, Christian Music, and Comedy Headline Must-See Weekend Entertainment

UP NEXT

What Winnie the Pooh and Mickey Mouse Can Tell Us About the Public Domain and Remix Culture

UP NEXT

‘Civil War’ Declares Victory at the Box Office, Toppling ‘Godzilla X Kong’

UP NEXT

Are Americans Feeling Like They Get Enough Sleep? Dream On, a New Gallup Poll Says

Trump’s Potential VP Pick Boasts About Executing Puppy

1 day ago

Trita Parsi: Blind Support for Israel Erodes Western Democracies

1 day ago

Fresno Trash Hauler’s Response to Overpayments: We Followed the City’s Rules

1 day ago

Which Six QBs Were Selected in the Top 12 of the NFL Draft?

1 day ago

Nuggets Close to Sweeping Lakers After Game 3 Win

1 day ago

Jose Ramirez: ‘I Want to Make a Statement and Put on a Show’

1 day ago

‘IDEA’ Is the Latest Career-Oriented Campus on Fresno Unified’s Drawing Board

Local Education /

1 day ago

Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s 6 Shutout Innings Help Dodgers Finish Sweep, Defeat Nats 2-1

1 day ago

The 49ers Add Florida Receiver Ricky Pearsall With the 30th Draft Pick

1 day ago

Political Stunt, Egg on His Face, Personal Vendetta. Who’s Fresno DA Talking About?

1 day ago

California Legislation Wants to Uncover the ‘Hidden Homicides’ of Domestic Violence

A state senator says there’s a “hidden homicide” epidemic of killers making domestic violence murders look like suicides or accidents. Her b...

11 hours ago

11 hours ago

California Legislation Wants to Uncover the ‘Hidden Homicides’ of Domestic Violence

11 hours ago

The Summer After Barbenheimer and the Strikes, Hollywood Charts a New Course

24 hours ago

Fresno Oops? Garbage Hike Protest Vote Delayed by Error

1 day ago

Trump’s Potential VP Pick Boasts About Executing Puppy

1 day ago

Trita Parsi: Blind Support for Israel Erodes Western Democracies

1 day ago

Fresno Trash Hauler’s Response to Overpayments: We Followed the City’s Rules

1 day ago

Which Six QBs Were Selected in the Top 12 of the NFL Draft?

1 day ago

Nuggets Close to Sweeping Lakers After Game 3 Win

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend