Madeline Buckley

madeline.buckley@indystar.com

Keith Cooper learned that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump tapped Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate while he was watching the news on television last month. And Cooper was angry.

More than 200 days have passed since a former deputy prosecutor wrote to Pence asking that he pardon Cooper, an innocent man who sat in prison for nine years. More than two years have passed since the Indiana Parole Board heard Cooper's petition for pardon. Pence has yet to formally exonerate Cooper.

"He can't even do right by me," Cooper told IndyStar on Monday. "What is he going to do for all U.S. citizens?"

The 49-year-old Chicago-area man was released from prison in 2006, shaving decades off his sentence after he agreed to a deal offered by prosecutors as the tide turned against his conviction. He was allowed to go free and reunite with his family. Yet his conviction for armed robbery still stood, despite mounting evidence that he was innocent.

In the years since he agreed to the deal, evidence of his innocence continued to grow. IndyStar extensively detailed the discrediting of the case against Cooper in a December 2015 story.

Cooper in 2014 asked the Indiana Parole Board for a pardon. The agency recommended that Pence grant it, which would dissolve the conviction on his record and affirm his innocence. The attorney who helped prosecute Cooper, former Elkhart County Deputy Prosecutor Michael A. Christofeno, in January wrote a letter to Pence urging that he pardon Cooper as he said newly uncovered evidence exonerated Cooper.

Keith Cooper: A man imprisoned for a crime he didn't commit

But still, the conviction hangs around Cooper's neck, weighing him down. He hasn't been able to secure a promotion at work. The conviction is on his record, there to raise eyebrows each time he is pulled over for a minor traffic violation.

Cooper thought the recommendations of the parole board and the former prosecutor meant that a pardon from Pence was a no-brainer and would come soon.

Pence has pardoned only three people since he took office in 2013. None of the pardons was granted on the basis of innocence. A spokeswoman in the governor's office said the pardon for Cooper remains under consideration.

"Literally, with a stroke of a pen, Governor Pence could make a real change in someone's life," said Elliot Slosar, Cooper's attorney. "Without a pardon being granted, (the conviction) prevents him from using his educational abilities to create a better life for his family."

Cooper has worked the same forklift job since he was released from prison. Just recently, Cooper said, he was passed over for a promotion. He once was made to stand in a lineup at a Chicago police station after an officer pulled him over, saw his conviction and suspected him of a local crime, Slosar said.

Now, Pence's time in office is ticking away. He dropped his re-election bid in favor of a chance at vice president. Democratic candidate John Gregg will now face Eric Holcomb, the candidate Republicans picked to replace Pence on the November ballot.

Cooper is left to wonder: Must he wait for a new governor to secure his exoneration?

Pence is in the national spotlight now, facing the intense scrutiny that comes with a presidential election. It's unclear how, or whether, that might affect Cooper's quest for justice.

"Obviously, Governor Pence is in the middle of a national election," Slosar said. "Our hope is that he will be able to find a moment to grant Keith the justice he has been waiting for."

Former IndyStar reporter Kristine Guerra contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Madeline Buckley at (317) 444-6083. Follow her on Twitter:@Mabuckley88.