Radio host gets pardon for his great - grandparents who were wrongfully executed in 1915 . Many prominent whites in the community , including the mayor and former sheriff of Chester County , came to the defense of the Griffin brothers . First time North Carolina has granted a posthumous pardon in capital murder case . ` ` Anytime that you can repair racism in this country is a step forward , '' he said . Thomas and Mary Griffin had been executed for the killing of a Confederate veteran .
Radio host gets pardon for his great - grandparents who were wrongfully executed in 1915 . First time North Carolina has granted a posthumous pardon in capital murder case . ` ` Anytime that you can repair racism in this country is a step forward , '' he said . Thomas and Mary Griffin had been executed for the killing of a Confederate veteran .