New Orleans ? Members of the Congressional Black Caucus called on Gov. Kathleen Blanco to pardon Mychal Bell and five other teenagers known as the “Jena 6.”

Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said in a letter to Blanco this week that Bell and the other teens have paid their debt to society and should be immediately pardoned.

“They and their families have suffered enough, as has the State of Louisiana and the town of Jena,” the letter reads.

Blanco’s press secretary, Marie Centanni, said Friday in a statement the governor cannot grant a pardon or commutation without a recommendation to do so from the state Pardon Board.

Blanco leaves office Jan. 14. The next Pardon Board meeting is scheduled for Jan. 17.