Friends, I will begin with an apology, an announcement, and my thanks. Yesterday, in my open letter to Curtis Hill, I cast some aspersions on the political campaigns in Indiana which haven’t had the courage to support a pardon for an innocent man. At the very time when I was writing and posting that update, I had this message waiting unread in my email inbox: “Thank you for your email. If you had written previously we did not see it. We have replied to dozens of emails regarding a pardon of Keith Cooper and John Gregg has stated his position when asked by the media and anyone else. He has said that he would pardon Keith Cooper as governor. Thanks again for reaching out. Jeff, Gregg for Governor” I want to apologize to the Gregg campaign for yesterday’s update. This is fantastic for us—that we can know that if John Gregg is elected to be the next Indiana governor, we will get a pardon for Keith Cooper. Thank you, John Gregg and your campaign, both for your pledge and for your patience as you have heard from supporters of Keith Cooper’s pardon. We hope that if the occasion presents itself during a debate or a campaign event, you will call upon GOP candidate Eric Holcomb to make the same pledge to pardon Keith Cooper. Friends, please consider posting your thanks to John Gregg for his support as a comment on his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/GreggForGovernor/. But otherwise, we can lay off continuing to call and email his campaign. Thank you also, supporters, for contacting John Gregg’s campaign. But . . . what the email from the Gregg campaign also tells me is that some of you knew that he was pledging to support a pardon before I knew. Not that I have to be first to get the news, but please, do share with us the interesting or important responses you are getting from your efforts on our behalf. So far, I have not heard from the Eric Holcomb campaign. He is John Gregg’s GOP opponent. Remember: our first political support was from Dave Ober, a GOP member of the Indiana House of Representatives. So this effort does not have to be partisan. If someone has indeed heard from the Holcomb campaign pledging to support a pardon for Keith Cooper, please let us know. But otherwise . . . We need to get a pledge from Eric Holcomb to pardon Keith Cooper. It needs to be a direct, unambiguous pledge—not a promise to consider it, not a promise to take it under advisement. Holcomb can, like Gregg, pledge to do the right thing, or he can expect to be called out for it. Flooding the targets of our efforts is what has been working for us. It’s not my tweet or your phone call or email, but all of our efforts combined and together which are getting us our results, so please, for this week, contact Eric Holcomb’s office and campaign, calling upon him to pledge to pardon Keith Cooper if he is elected. Office phone number: 317-232-4545 Office email at this link: http://www.in.gov/lg/2333.htm Campaign Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HolcombForIndiana/ Campaign email link: https://action.holcombforindiana.com/comment/contact-us_20160830/?_ga=1.128379468.1924021185.1472068066 And let us know what kind of response you get from Holcomb or his campaign. I would never suggest giving up a strategy which has gotten us this far, so please, also do continue contacting Governor Pence’s office: 317-232-4567 and email http://in.gov/gov/2333.htm. Believe me when I say that we are getting through to him. Though he did not respond as we want with his letter last week, we forced him to respond. If we keep up the pressure, I think we can still force him, politically, to pardon Keith Cooper. But our latest strategy has been to try to influence the debate Pence will participate in a week from tomorrow. I started another petition asking the debate moderator to question Pence about the pardon. That petition has 1300 signatures as I am writing this. Please do both sign it and share it with Elaine Quijano via either Twitter, @Elaine_Quijano, or on her Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Elaine-Quijano-646196552180916/. And you may continue applying pressure to Curtis Hill, because he just deserves it for talking when he shouldn’t have and remaining silent, too, when he shouldn’t. He can support a pardon for Keith Cooper, which would probably make his life easier: Email: http://www.elkhartcountyprosecutor.com/contact, and phone: 574-296-1888. Finally, I spent this weekend in the Chicago area, and yesterday I finally met Keith Cooper, his wife Nicole, and his children and grandchildren. They are an easy family to become friends with—generous, family-oriented, loving, and concerned even for others’ welfare. Keith deeply wants this pardon, but he has been down before, and he and his family are not letting bitterness run their lives. And if I could say something right now directly to Governor Pence, it would be this: Pence, you claim to be a Christian, and it is not my right to question it. But the Cooper family are your brothers and sisters in Christ. In attitude, they are more gracious towards you than you have ever been towards them. Pence, if you are listening to God, what is He telling you about this? Keep up the efforts, friends. We appreciate it. Jack Heller