Alice Marie Johnson Pushes Illinois Governor for Larry Hoover’s Release
Here’s the bottom line: Alice Marie Johnson, famously dubbed the “Pardon Czar,” is mounting a high-stakes campaign to persuade Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to commute the sentence of Larry Hoover. Johnson—whose own life was transformed by a presidential commutation in 2018—has tapped into her White House connections and criminal-justice expertise to rally support for Hoover, a founder of the Chicago street gang Gangster Disciples.
Johnson’s appeal hinges on two pillars: humanitarian relief and systemic reform. After serving 21 years of a life sentence, she was nominated by then–President Donald Trump and granted clemency, an event chronicled by The New York Times. Now, Johnson argues that Hoover’s decades-long incarceration—marked by good behavior in federal custody—deserves similar consideration. In an open letter published May 29, she underscored Hoover’s age, health concerns, and rehabilitation efforts, citing a letter from 12 former prosecutors who praised his “substantial efforts” at conflict resolution (Chicago Tribune).
Behind the scenes, Johnson is working with advocacy groups like the ACLU and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to amplify her message. She’s also enlisted support from Illinois legislators on both sides of the aisle; state Senator Willie Preston recently co-sponsored a resolution calling for Hoover’s sentence review (The Hill). Combined with endorsements from criminal-justice experts at Harvard’s Kennedy School and Harvard Law’s Charles Hamilton Houston Institute, Johnson’s coalition seeks to frame Hoover as a candidate for restorative justice rather than public menacing.
Governor Pritzker has yet to respond directly to Johnson’s plea, though his office confirmed receipt of her petition in early June. Spokesperson Jordan Abudayyeh told the Chicago Sun-Times that the governor “respects all advocacy on commutation matters” but must weigh “public safety and legal precedent.” Pritzker, a former federal prosecutor, has granted clemency sparingly since taking office in 2019—only approving a handful of pardons in his first term. Johnson’s team believes her high-profile status and past success in Washington give her leverage few others possess.
With Illinois poised to consider dozens of applications before the end of 2025, Johnson’s initiative spotlights broader calls for sentencing reform across the United States. Her underlying message: if a first-time nonviolent offender can secure clemency through demonstrated rehabilitation, so can a high-profile figure like Hoover, whose leadership in prison education programs has been documented by Human Rights Watch.
And there you have it. Make of that what you will.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and TMZ, Chicago Tribune, The Hill, Chicago Sun-Times, The New York Times
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
