Mark Lynch is trying to cover up his criminal record. But facts can be pesky things…
Lynch claims he received a presidential pardon for trafficking cocaine. But it doesn’t exist.
Lynch—who was arrested for a hit and run—claims the incident was nothing of the sort. But his story doesn’t “add up.”
Read more from State of the Day’s new report here or below.
Investigating Lindsey Graham’s Opponent’s Weird ‘Hit And Run’
Amber Duke
State of the Day
May 9, 2026
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Something about [Lynch’s] admitted criminal past didn’t seem to add up.
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The indictment alleged that, on or about July 22, 1985, Lynch failed to remain at the scene of an accident involving his vehicle and “that of one David Bailey,” that Bailey was injured, and that Lynch failed to provide information or render aid.
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[T]he ticket does not explain why prosecutors later alleged Lynch failed to remain at the scene, provide information or render aid.
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Lynch told the Daily Caller the indictment was ended because the case was not a hit-and-run.
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But the court form does not say the indictment was ended because it was false. It simply says Lynch “pled to other charges.”The solicitor who signed the indictment told the Daily Caller that, generally speaking, a hit-and-run case involving personal injury might be pleaded down if the parties reached some sort of settlement. He did not provide records showing whether that occurred in Lynch’s case, noting that he could not recall the incident.
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I pressed Lynch again later in the interview, reading him the indictment language: that the accident involved “Mark Stephen Lynch’s vehicle and that of one David Bailey,” that Bailey was injured, and that Lynch failed to give information and render aid.Lynch responded by blaming Graham.
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He then repeated his denial.
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Lynch said the charges had been “expunged,” though SLED still produced a criminal-history report in 2026 showing the underlying record and pardon entries.
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The 1985 accident is not the only unresolved issue in Lynch’s past.Lynch has also claimed he received a presidential pardon. The public description for an April 15 episode of Straight Talk With Bill Frady says Lynch explained that, 42 years ago, he was arrested for cocaine trafficking and “was able to get a Presidential Pardon and his record was erased.”
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When I asked Lynch directly whether the presidential pardon was real, he said his attorney was looking for it and that he could not find it.
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The Daily Caller has not located a record of a presidential pardon, and Lynch has not provided one. A Justice Department list of pardons granted by President George H.W. Bush from 1989 through 1993 does not appear to include Lynch. The DOJ page lists Bush pardon dates in August 1989, March 1991, July 1991, December 1992 and January 1993; it does not list any 1990 pardon date.
Read more here.
Nick Puglia
Regional Press Secretary
[email protected]