Could This Be Mike Huckabee's Willie Horton?

You remember Willie Horton from the 1988 presidential campaign? This is from his Wikipedia entry:

...a convicted felon who was the subject of a Massachusetts weekend furlough program that released him while serving a life sentence for murder, without the possibility of parole, during which he committed assault, armed robbery and rape.

Al Gore brought Horton into the campaign during his failed run against Michael Dukakis, the governor who authorized the furlough program. During the general campaign George H.W. Bush basically beat Dukakis over the head with the guy and though it didn't help Gore, it helped Bush win.

On Sunday morning four police officers in Washington State were killed in an ambush, and one of the suspects has a connection that Mike Huckabee will find troubling should he run again in 2012:

Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing of four Lakewood police officers this morning, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.

Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.

"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said Sunday night when informed that Clemmons was being sought in connection to the killings.

Clemmons' criminal history includes at least five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington. The record also stands out for the number of times he has been released from custody despite questions about the danger he posed.

Clemmons had been in jail in Pierce County for the past several months on a pending charge of second-degree rape of a child.

He was released from custody just six days ago, even though he was wanted on a fugitive warrant out of Arkansas and was staring at eight felony charges in all out of Washington state.

Clemmons posted $15,000 with a Chehalis company called Jail Sucks Bail Bonds. The bondsman, in turn, put up $150,000, securing Clemmons' release on the pending child-rape charge.

Clemmons lives in Tacoma, where he has run a landscaping and power-washing business out of his house, according to a police interview with his wife earlier this year.

As mentioned previously Huckabee may not be inclined to run for other reasons, but this may make his decision a bit easier.

Memo to presidential wannabes - don't let bad guys out of prison if you find yourself with that opportunity. They'll just screw you up later on.

UPDATE: Huckabee responds to this unwanted attention (from Marc Ambinder's Twitter feed):

Huck, in statement, blames "justice systems" in both AK and WA for allowing release of suspect wanted for these "worst or all murders."

From statement: "He was arrested later for parole violation and taken back to prison to serve his full term, (cont)

Huck: "Our thoughts and prayers are and should be with the families of those honorable, brave, and heroic police officers.”