Alice Marie Johnson: Difference between revisions

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Johnson became a grandmother and great-grandmother while imprisoned.<ref name="Baker"/> She exhibited good behavior in prison,<ref name="BBCKushner"/> and according to her lawyer, the warden supported her release.<ref name=FoxNews>{{cite web|url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/07/who-is-alice-marie-johnson-great-grandmother-trump-is-granting-clemency-to.html|title=Who is Alice Marie Johnson, the great-grandmother Trump is granting clemency to?|first=Kaitlyn|last=Schallhorn|date=June 7, 2018|publisher=Fox News}}</ref> A campaign in support of her release was launched by the [[American Civil Liberties Union]] and the website ''[[Mic (media company)|Mic]]''; activists who supported her release argued that the punishment was excessive and an example of disproportionate impacts on [[African-Americans]].<ref name="Baker"/> A number of individuals and organizations supported Johnson's bid for clemency, including U.S. Representatives [[Steve Cohen]], [[Bennie Thompson]], and [[Marc Veasey]], law professors [[Marc Morjé Howard]] and [[Shon Hopwood]], and ''[[Orange is the New Black]]'' author [[Piper Kerman]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://justiceroundtable.org/resource/sign-on-letter-for-alice-johnson/|title=Sign On Letter for Alice Johnson|publisher=The Justice Roundtable}}</ref>
Johnson became a grandmother and great-grandmother while imprisoned.<ref name="Baker"/> She exhibited good behavior in prison,<ref name="BBCKushner"/> and according to her lawyer, the warden supported her release.<ref name=FoxNews>{{cite web|url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/06/07/who-is-alice-marie-johnson-great-grandmother-trump-is-granting-clemency-to.html|title=Who is Alice Marie Johnson, the great-grandmother Trump is granting clemency to?|first=Kaitlyn|last=Schallhorn|date=June 7, 2018|publisher=Fox News}}</ref> A campaign in support of her release was launched by the [[American Civil Liberties Union]] and the website ''[[Mic (media company)|Mic]]''; activists who supported her release argued that the punishment was excessive and an example of disproportionate impacts on [[African-Americans]].<ref name="Baker"/> A number of individuals and organizations supported Johnson's bid for clemency, including U.S. Representatives [[Steve Cohen]], [[Bennie Thompson]], and [[Marc Veasey]], law professors [[Marc Morjé Howard]] and [[Shon Hopwood]], and ''[[Orange is the New Black]]'' author [[Piper Kerman]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://justiceroundtable.org/resource/sign-on-letter-for-alice-johnson/|title=Sign On Letter for Alice Johnson|publisher=The Justice Roundtable}}</ref>


Johnson's was one of the 16,776 petitions filed in the [[Presidency of Barack Obama|Obama administration]]'s 2014 [[List of people granted executive clemency by Barack Obama|clemency]] project.<ref name="BBCKushner">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43984893 |title=Kardashian lobbies for presidential pardon |date=May 3, 2018 |publisher=BBC |accessdate=June 13, 2018}}</ref> In 2016, she wrote an op-ed for CNN asking for forgiveness and a second chance.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kasana |first=Mehreen |url=https://www.bustle.com/p/alice-marie-johnson-pardon-could-happen-sooner-than-you-think-according-to-a-new-report-9304797 |title=Kim Kardashian's Meeting With Trump Apparently Went Even Better Than We Thought |work=Bustle |date=June 7, 2018 |accessdate=June 13, 2018}}</ref> Her application was denied just before Obama left office. In 2018, [[Kim Kardashian]] and President Donald Trump's son-in-law [[Jared Kushner]] sought to persuade Trump to grant clemency to Johnson.<ref name="BBCKushner"/> In late May 2018, Kardashian met with the President in the [[Oval Office]] to urge him to pardon Johnson.<ref name="Gonzales"/> On June 6, 2018, following Kardashian's appeal, Trump commuted Johnson's sentence,<ref name="Baker"/> and Johnson was released.<ref name=CBS/> The commutation was one of a series of acts of clemency made by Trump in a "few high-profile cases brought to him by associates and allies."<ref name="Baker"/> The ''Washington Post''{{'}}s ''[[Wonkblog]]'' described the pardon as somewhat surprising given Trump's past statements in favor of executing drug dealers.<ref>Christopher Ingraham, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/06/06/its-not-just-alice-marie-johnson-over-2000-federal-prisoners-are-serving-life-sentences-for-nonviolent-drug-crimes/ It's not just Alice Marie Johnson: Over 2,000 federal prisoners are serving life sentences for nonviolent drug crimes], ''Washington Post'' (June 6, 2018).</ref>
Johnson's was one of the 16,776 petitions filed in the [[Presidency of Barack Obama|Obama administration]]'s 2014 [[List of people granted executive clemency by Barack Obama|clemency]] project.<ref name="BBCKushner">{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43984893 |title=Kardashian lobbies for presidential pardon |date=May 3, 2018 |publisher=BBC |accessdate=June 13, 2018}}</ref> In 2016, she wrote an op-ed for CNN asking for forgiveness and a second chance.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kasana |first=Mehreen |url=https://www.bustle.com/p/alice-marie-johnson-pardon-could-happen-sooner-than-you-think-according-to-a-new-report-9304797 |title=Kim Kardashian's Meeting With Trump Apparently Went Even Better Than We Thought |work=Bustle |date=June 7, 2018 |accessdate=June 13, 2018}}</ref> Her application was denied just before Obama left office. In 2018, [[Kim Kardashian]] and President Donald Trump's son-in-law [[Jared Kushner]] sought to persuade Trump to grant clemency to Johnson.<ref name="BBCKushner"/> In late May 2018, Kardashian met with the President in the [[Oval Office]] to urge him to pardon Johnson.<ref name="Gonzales"/> On June 6, 2018, following Kardashian's appeal, Trump commuted Johnson's sentence,<ref name="Baker"/> and Johnson was released.<ref name=CBS/> The commutation was one of a series of acts of clemency made by Trump in a "few high-profile cases brought to him by associates and allies."<ref name="Baker"/> The ''Washington Post''{{'}}s ''[[Wonkblog]]'' described the commutation as somewhat surprising given Trump's past statements in favor of executing drug dealers.<ref>Christopher Ingraham, [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2018/06/06/its-not-just-alice-marie-johnson-over-2000-federal-prisoners-are-serving-life-sentences-for-nonviolent-drug-crimes/ It's not just Alice Marie Johnson: Over 2,000 federal prisoners are serving life sentences for nonviolent drug crimes], ''Washington Post'' (June 6, 2018).</ref>


When Trump delivered his [[2019 State of the Union Address|State of the Union address on February 5, 2019]], Johnson was a guest of the president. Trump asked Johnson to stand up to be recognized, and Johnson received a standing ovation from members of Congress.<ref>{{cite web|agency=Associated Press|title=Alice Marie Johnson, inmate freed with help by Kim Kardashian West, gets book deal|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2019/02/06/alice-marie-johnson-freed-help-kim-kardashian-gets-book-deal/2787395002/|date=February 6, 2019}}</ref>
When Trump delivered his [[2019 State of the Union Address|State of the Union address on February 5, 2019]], Johnson was a guest of the president. Trump asked Johnson to stand up to be recognized, and Johnson received a standing ovation from members of Congress.<ref>{{cite web|agency=Associated Press|title=Alice Marie Johnson, inmate freed with help by Kim Kardashian West, gets book deal|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2019/02/06/alice-marie-johnson-freed-help-kim-kardashian-gets-book-deal/2787395002/|date=February 6, 2019}}</ref>

Revision as of 19:11, 5 December 2019

Alice Marie Johnson
Johnson in February 2019
Born (1955-05-30) May 30, 1955 (age 68)[1]
New York City, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Criminal penaltyLife without parole
Criminal statusReleased on parole after clemency granted

Alice Marie Johnson (born May 30, 1955)[1] is an American former drug trafficker[2] who was convicted in 1996 for her involvement in a Memphis cocaine trafficking organization and sentenced to life imprisonment. In June 2018, after serving 21 years in prison, Johnson was released from the Federal Correctional Institution, Aliceville, after President Donald Trump commuted her sentence.

Crime and sentence

A divorced mother of five children, Johnson was arrested in 1993 and convicted in 1996 of eight federal criminal counts relating to her involvement in a Memphis, Tennessee-based cocaine trafficking organization.[3] In addition to drug conspiracy counts, Johnson was convicted of money laundering and structuring, the latter crime because of her purchase of a house with a down payment structured to avoid hitting a $10,000 reporting threshold.[3] The Memphis operation involved over a dozen individuals.[4] The indictment described Johnson as a leader in a multi-million dollar cocaine ring, and detailed dozens of drug transactions and deliveries.[5] For 3 years, she and Curtis Mcdonald operated a multi-million dollar drug business between Memphis, Tennessee and Houston, Texas. During the 3 years, Johnson bought a brown Mercury Cougar and modified the structure of this and 2 other cars in order to hide the transport of 3 tons of cocaine for the Cali Columbian Cartel. Johnson and Curtis Mcdonald were in charge of distributing 3 tons of cocaine throughout Memphis, Tennessee and then transporting millions of dollars in drug proceeds back to the Cali Cartel in Houston, Texas. [6] Evidence presented at trial proved that the Memphis operation was directly connected to Colombian drug dealers based in Texas. She even rented a house in her daughter's name to house the couriers she paid to perform the transports. She purchased a cleaning company in order to launder the huge sums of money she received. During the operation numerous hotel rooms were rented and calls were monitored within these rooms between the Columbian Cartel, the hired transporters, and Johnson herself. 11,000 telephone calls were monitored between Johnson, the Columbian drug cartel, and the couriers she hired. [7][8] Johnson was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole in 1997. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Julia Gibbons said that Johnson was "the quintessential entrepreneur" in an operation that dealt in 2,000 to 3,000 kilograms (i.e. 3 tons) of cocaine, with a "very significant" impact on the community.[8] Co-defendants Curtis McDonald and Jerlean McNeil were sentenced to life and 19 years in federal prison, respectively.[8] A number of other co-defendants who testified against Johnson received sentences between probation and 10 years.[3]

Johnson told Mic in 2017 that she had become involved in the drug trade after losing a longtime job at FedEx due to a gambling addiction, becoming divorced, and experiencing the loss of her youngest son in a motorcycle accident.[9] According to a profile in Mic, Johnson filed for bankruptcy in 1991, and foreclosure of her house followed.[10]

Commutation and release

Johnson waves toward the President at the 2019 State of the Union Address

Johnson became a grandmother and great-grandmother while imprisoned.[3] She exhibited good behavior in prison,[11] and according to her lawyer, the warden supported her release.[12] A campaign in support of her release was launched by the American Civil Liberties Union and the website Mic; activists who supported her release argued that the punishment was excessive and an example of disproportionate impacts on African-Americans.[3] A number of individuals and organizations supported Johnson's bid for clemency, including U.S. Representatives Steve Cohen, Bennie Thompson, and Marc Veasey, law professors Marc Morjé Howard and Shon Hopwood, and Orange is the New Black author Piper Kerman.[13]

Johnson's was one of the 16,776 petitions filed in the Obama administration's 2014 clemency project.[11] In 2016, she wrote an op-ed for CNN asking for forgiveness and a second chance.[14] Her application was denied just before Obama left office. In 2018, Kim Kardashian and President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner sought to persuade Trump to grant clemency to Johnson.[11] In late May 2018, Kardashian met with the President in the Oval Office to urge him to pardon Johnson.[2] On June 6, 2018, following Kardashian's appeal, Trump commuted Johnson's sentence,[3] and Johnson was released.[5] The commutation was one of a series of acts of clemency made by Trump in a "few high-profile cases brought to him by associates and allies."[3] The Washington Post's Wonkblog described the commutation as somewhat surprising given Trump's past statements in favor of executing drug dealers.[15]

When Trump delivered his State of the Union address on February 5, 2019, Johnson was a guest of the president. Trump asked Johnson to stand up to be recognized, and Johnson received a standing ovation from members of Congress.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Alice Marie Johnson – FREE AT LAST – LIFE sent commuted!". CAN-DO. June 6, 2018.
  2. ^ a b Erica Gonzales (May 30, 2018). "Donald Trump Just Posted a Photo with Kim Kardashian in the Oval Office After Discussing Prison Reform". Harper's Bazaar.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Baker, Peter (June 6, 2018). "Alice Marie Johnson Is Granted Clemency by Trump After Push by Kim Kardashian West". New York Times. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
  4. ^ Amy Mackelden (June 6, 2018). "Who is Alice Marie Johnson?". Harper's Bazaar.
  5. ^ a b Adriana Diaz (June 7, 2018). "Alice Johnson embracing newfound freedom after two decades behind bars". CBS News.
  6. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FEJnSkpDP4
  7. ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FEJnSkpDP4
  8. ^ a b c Memphis drug dealer gets life in prison, Associated Press (February 23, 1997).
  9. ^ Jake Horowitz & Kendall Ciesemie, Exclusive: Kim Kardashian West has talked to White House about pardoning nonviolent drug offender, Mic (May 2, 2018).
  10. ^ Gabriel Grand, This Single Mother is Serving Life Without Parole for the Most Absurd Reason You Can Imagine, Mic (November 16, 2013).
  11. ^ a b c "Kardashian lobbies for presidential pardon". BBC. May 3, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  12. ^ Schallhorn, Kaitlyn (June 7, 2018). "Who is Alice Marie Johnson, the great-grandmother Trump is granting clemency to?". Fox News.
  13. ^ "Sign On Letter for Alice Johnson". The Justice Roundtable.
  14. ^ Kasana, Mehreen (June 7, 2018). "Kim Kardashian's Meeting With Trump Apparently Went Even Better Than We Thought". Bustle. Retrieved June 13, 2018.
  15. ^ Christopher Ingraham, It's not just Alice Marie Johnson: Over 2,000 federal prisoners are serving life sentences for nonviolent drug crimes, Washington Post (June 6, 2018).
  16. ^ "Alice Marie Johnson, inmate freed with help by Kim Kardashian West, gets book deal". Associated Press. February 6, 2019.

External links

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