Nation : Hearst Pardon Called Doubtful

President Reagan and his aides indicated today that publishing heiress Patty Hearst and other notable citizens should not expect to be pardoned before the White House changes hands Friday.

Amid recent speculation that one of the President’s final acts would be to grant a full pardon to Hearst, who was convicted of armed robbery in 1976, Reagan was asked if he would take any such action before leaving office. Applications “are always coming across my desk,” he replied, but the Hearst case “hasn’t come to my desk or attention yet.” White House sources told reporters “not to expect anything too extraordinary here in the form of pardons,” such as for Hearst or industrialist Armand Hammer.