President Trump has announced that he had commuted the life sentence of Alice Marie Johnson, a 63-year-old serving for a first-time, nonviolent drug offense, on Wednesday.
Trumps decision comes days after reality star Kim Kardashian spoke with him about prison reforms and Alice Marie's sentencing.
Kardashian has spent months using her platform to publicize Alice Marie's incarceration. She met with the president to discuss the possibility of revisiting Johnson's sentence.
I would like to thank President Trump for his time this afternoon, Kardashian said after her visit in May.
It is our hope that the President will grant clemency to Ms. Alice Marie Johnson who is serving a life sentence for a first-time, non-violent drug offense.
Johnson was apprehended for helping a multi million-dollar cocaine ring, something Johnson said she did because she was unable to support her family.
In an op-ed titled for CNN, Johnson wrote that her life began to spiral out of control after the loss of her son and her divorce.
I made the biggest mistake of my life to make ends meet and got involved with people selling drugs, Johnson wrote in her CNN piece.
This was a road I never dreamed of venturing down. I became what is called a telephone mule, passing messages between the distributors and sellers.
I participated in a drug conspiracy, and I was wrong.
The White House released a statement on Wednesday commending Johnson for her ability to rehabilitate herself in prison.
Johnsons clemency was supported by her warden, Arcala Washington-Adduci, who told the White House she is a model inmate who is willing to go above and beyond in all work tasks.
While this Administration will always be very tough on crime, it believes that those who have paid their debt to society and worked hard to better themselves while in prison deserve a second chance, the White House statement read.
Source: NAN