Among those on the long list of people President Trump pardoned or granted clemency during his last day in office was a young man whose freedom Kim Kardashian has been advocating for since 2018.
Chris Young was 22 when, due to the “three strikes” law, he received a life sentence without parole for the non-violent offenses of marijuana and cocaine possession.
On Wednesday, Trump commuted the remainder of the now 32-year-old Young’s sentence.
After Kardashian successfully lobbied Trump to pardon Alice Johnson — who spent 22 years in jail for the non-violent, first-time offense of her role in a large cocaine-dealing ring — in 2018, she began working to secure Young’s freedom. In September 2018, the reality star visited the Oval Office with former US District Judge Kevin Sharp, who personally requested that Trump reverse the life sentence which he himself had given Young.
Kardashian — who said in 2019 that she’s studying to become a lawyer — remained involved with Young’s legal team following the Oval Office meeting, sources told TMZ.
“Mr. Young has made productive use of his time in prison by taking courses and learning coding skills,” read a White House press release. “He also has maintained a spotless disciplinary record. Mr. Young’s many supporters describe him as an intelligent, positive person who takes full responsibility for his actions and who lacked a meaningful first chance in life due to what another federal judge called an ‘undeniably tragic childhood.’”
Trump’s last-minute pardons and commutations have also included the sentences of Snoop Dogg pal Michael “Harry O” Harris, former White House strategist Steve Bannon and 140 others.