Earlier today, I asked in this post "Has anyone sentenced to life without parole ever before spoken on final night of major political convention?". I was referencing, of course, Alice Marie Johnson having the chance to tell her story during the final night of the Republican National Convention.
But now, as this post title highlights, I have a new, update question about Ms. Johnson based on this news as reported by Politico: "President Donald Trump on Friday granted a full pardon to Alice Marie Johnson — the 65-year-old Memphis woman whose life sentence he commuted two years ago — just hours after Johnson spoke on behalf of Trump’s reelection campaign during the Republican National Convention." Here is more:
Johnson was serving life in prison for a nonviolent drug offense when Trump commuted her sentence in June 2018 at the urging of reality TV star Kim Kardashian West, who visited the White House to advocate for Johnson’s release.
On Thursday, during the final night of Republicans’ nominating convention, Johnson delivered a primetime speech testifying to Trump’s “compassion” and commending the administration’s work to advance criminal justice reform legislation. “My transformation was described as extraordinary,” she said. “Truth is, there are thousands of people just like me who deserve the opportunity to come home.”
In an interview later Friday on CNN, Johnson said she “had no idea” Trump would grant her a pardon during their White House meeting.
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