Huckabee, who has said he is considering a run for president in 2008, said he got the idea for a pardon when he realized that Richards' impression of Arkansas "was marred by a misdemeanor traffic stop."
During a March 9 concert at Little Rock by the Stones, Richards made reference to the matter, asking if anyone in the audience was from Fordyce. "I used to know the chief of police there," he told the crowd.