Morrison pardoned

BREAK ON THROUGH TO THE OTHER SIDE: Jim Morrison was pardoned by the state of Florida on Thursday. Gov. Charlie Crist led the effort to clear Morrison of his conviction for indecent exposure and profanity stemming from a 1969 Doors concert in Miami. The board’s action did not come without objections, the N.Y. Times noted. Retired Miami policeman Angel Lago opposed the pardon, calling Morrison a “drug addict” who didn’t deserve it. Lago, who was a friend of one of the arresting officers, also contended that the pardon suggested that police officers had lied about what they saw at the concert: “This is the wrong message to send the youth of this country. I think it’s absolutely wrong.” Crist pointed out there remained doubts as to whether Morrison had exposed himself, while fellow clemency board member Alex Sink, the state’s CFO, explained that it wasn’t the job of the board to “retry” his case. She said the decision to grant a pardon was recognition of Morrison’s artistic legacy and that his accomplishments had endured since his death. “We don’t know what did or did not happen,” she accurately pointed out. Interestingly, the Florida-born Morrison and Crist have a common affiliation: both attended Florida State, though Morrison was a Seminole only briefly. (12/10a)