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Schwarzenegger Nabs Outgoing Kudos From Celebs Praising His Pardon Of 16-Year-Old Sex-Trafficking Victim

Categories: Crime

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Sarah Kruzan was just 13 years old when she was recruited into a prostitution ring
The Governator may be getting bashed for his last-minute pardon of a politician's student-stabbing son -- by the Weekly, the victim's family and karma, we can only hope -- but a second pardon on his last day in office is being showered with all sorts of love.

Even, last night, from premiere Hollywood cougar-couple Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher.

The pardon, unlike aforementioned political favor, offsets Schwarzenegger's bad publicity with some clear-as-day justice. Sara Kruzan was an underage Riverside resident forced into prostitution by a man she later murdered. In 1994, Kruzan was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the crime -- an especially harsh punishment for a 16-year-old victim of sex trafficking.

Ever since, activists and bloggers have been fighting for some clemency. The Daily Voice detailed an interview with the seemingly non-threatening and remorseful Kruzan, now 32, last October:

"That means I'm gonna die here," she heartbreakingly reflects. And with tears soaking up her eyes, admits all wrongdoing: "I definitely know I deserve punishment: I mean, you don't just take somebody's life and think that it's okay; so, yes, definitely, I deserve punishment." But then she asks, and answers, a question the judge who sentenced her should have pondered more carefully: "How much? I don't know."

On Sunday, Schwarzenegger reduced Kruzan's sentence to 25 years, in addition to granting her the possibility of parole. And he's getting a whole Christmas-load of love from those who followed her case -- citizens, politicians and most importantly, Demi and Ashton.

The couple had matching his-and-hers Tweets last night:

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Twitter
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Twitter

They then moved on to more important things, like a post-holiday jet set to Brasil.

Of course, Senator Leland Yee is getting in on the good-publicity fest as well, giving the governator a metaphorical slow clap for his honorable pursuit of justice. We should see more of that, says Yee's statement:

"I applaud the governor's action and the hard work of [so] many to highlight this case. The case of Sara Kruzan demonstrates why we should never sentence a child to life without the possibility of parole - a sentence to die in prison. Unfortunately, there are many more Sara Kruzans out there who are also deserving of a more appropriate sentence."

Flashback to the official "Free Sarah" video:

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