President Donald Trump granted clemency to five felons convicted of fraud and drug trafficking in his latest overture to criminal justice reform advocates Wednesday.
The convicts are Lenora Logan, who served roughly 20 years in prison for a cocaine conspiracy; Rashella Reed, a former teacher convicted of money laundering and wire fraud; Charles Tanner, a former boxer convicted of drug trafficking; John Bolen, a former business owner convicted of drug trafficking, and Curtis McDonald, who has served 24 years in prison for a 1996 drug trafficking conviction.
Logan and Reed have already been released from prison, with Logan receiving a compassionate release and Reed being released on home confinement, the White House said in a statement. (RELATED: Mark Meadows Attacks FBI Director Christopher Wray Over Mail-In Ballot Debate)
WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 27: U.S. President Donald Trump talks during a news conference and meeting with African American supporters in the Cabinet Room at the White House February 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Tanner, Bolen and McDonald all remain in prison, and Trump’s clemency grants will end their sentences but will not expunge the convictions from their criminal records.
Trump has made several overtures to criminal justice reform advocates throughout his administration. He pardoned Alice Marie Johnson, another drug trafficking convict, in June 2018 following White House visits on her behalf from Kim Kardashian-West.
Johnson later appeared at the 2020 Republican National Convention to deliver a speech praising Trump’s efforts on justice reform.
Senior Trump Advisors Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have also been strong advocates for justice reform since Trump gained office in 2017. The pair frequently butted heads with then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who was widely known for his tough-on-crime policies.
Trump’s administration also championed the First Step Act, a suite of justice reform legislation hailed even by Trump’s critics. While Trump has not made his reform efforts a center piece of his pitch on the campaign trail, he has made frequent reference to it in his messaging to black voters.