Trump commutes gang leader's sentence in flurry of pardons
As part of a spree of clemency actions, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday commuted the federal prison sentence of Larry Hoover, the founder of a notorious Chicago street gang.Hoover was the leader of the Gangster Disciples and in the 1990s was given six life sentences on conspiracy, extortion, drug and other criminal charges.In addition to his federal sentence, Hoover still faces a 200-year jail term in the state of Illinois for murder, and is unlikely to be released soon. A president is unable to commute state-level sentences.On Wednesday the president also granted a pardon to several other convicts, including Michael Grimm, a former New York City congressman.
He served seven months in prison after pleading guilty to felony tax fraud.As well and Hoover and Grimm, eight others have been pardoned by the president in recent days. Department of Justice (DoJ) records indicate that during his second term Trump has pardoned more than 40 people, in addition to almost 1,600 pardons doled out to people charged or convicted in connection with the 6 January 2021 US Capitol riot.What is a presidential pardon?Hoover, 74, built the Gangster Disciples into a nationwide street gang from its origins on Chicago's South Side in the 1970s.In 1973 he was convicted of ordering the execution of a rival drug dealer. Authorities allege that he continued to lead his gang from prison.In the 1990s he formed a political organisation and claimed that he had transformed the Gangster Disciples into a community-service organisation called Growth and Development.However, he was found guilty of a long list of federal charges in 1997.In recent years he has advocated for criminal justice reform including the First Step Act, which Trump signed into law in 2018. Among other things, the law allows for reduced sentences for inmates who participate in programmes aimed at reducing reoffending.Hoover has continued to publicly disavow gang life."I am no longer a member, leader, or even an elder statesman of the Gangster Disciples," Hoover wrote in a letter to a court in 2022. "I want nothing to do with it now and forever."However, the authorities have taken a different view, and prosecutors alleged in 2021 that he was still involved in promoting Gangster Disciples members while locked up in prison. They have argued that he is still effectively the leader of the group.At a hearing last year, a judge asked one of Hoover's lawyers: "How many other murders is he responsible for?"After news broke of the commutation of his federal sentence, Hoover's lawyer Justin Moore posted online: "We got Larry Hoover out of federal prison - when many said it was impossible… Illinois must send him home for good."
Pardons for rapper and former politicians
Grimm, the former congressman, pleaded guilty to underreporting income from a restaurant that he owned.In addition, Trump issued pardons on Wednesday for:Former Connecticut Governor John Rowland, who was convicted on election fraud charges and sentenced to two and a half years in prison in 2015Kentrell Gaulden, a rapper known as NBA YoungBoy, who has faced numerous drugs, weapons and fraud chargesConvicted fraudster Kevin Eric BaisdenMark Bashaw, an army officer who was convicted in a court martial of violating Covid protection rulesTanner Mansell and John Moore, who were convicted of theft at sea when they released sharks they thought were being illegally fished. It turned out the sharks were being legally caught for research purposesOn Tuesday, Trump also pardoned Todd and Julie Chrisley, two reality TV stars who were convicted of tax evasion and defrauding banks.Also on Wednesday, Trump said he would "take a look at" pardoning a group of men charged with planning to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer in 2020."I did watch the trial," he said. "It looked to me like somewhat of a railroad job… It looked to me like some people said some stupid things."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
6 minutes ago
- The Independent
Family of teen arrested on his way to volleyball practice asks immigration officials to release him
The family of an 18-year-old Massachusetts high school student arrested on his way to volleyball practice pleaded with immigration officials to release him Wednesday. 'I love my son. We need Marcelo back home. It's no family without him,' João Paulo Gomes Pereira said in a video released by his son's attorney. 'We love America. Please, bring my son back.' Marcelo Gomes da Silva, who came to the U.S. from Brazil at age 7, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Saturday. Authorities have said the agents were looking for the teenager's father, who owns the car Gomes da Silva was driving at the time. 'Like any local law enforcement officer, if you encounter someone that has a warrant or … he's here illegally, we will take action on it,' Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons told reporters Monday. Gomes da Silva initially entered the country on a visitor visa and was later issued a student visa that has since lapsed, said his attorney, Robin Nice. She described him as deeply rooted in his community and a dedicated member of both the Milford High School marching band and a band at his church. 'The actions by ICE do not make the community safer,' she said in a statement. 'They just sow fear through the immigrant community.' A federal judge considering Gomes da Silva's request to be released while the immigration case proceeds has given the government until June 16 to respond and has ordered that Gomes da Silva not be moved out of Massachusetts without 48 hours' notice given to the court. A hearing in immigration court is scheduled for Thursday. U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said ICE officers were targeting a 'known public safety threat' and that Gomes da Silva's father 'has a habit of reckless driving at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour through residential areas.' 'While ICE officers never intended to apprehend Gomes da Silva, he was found to be in the United States illegally and subject to removal proceedings, so officers made the arrest,' she said in a statement. The video released Wednesday shows Gomes da Silva's parents and younger siblings in the teen's bedroom. His sister describes watching movies with her brother and enjoying food he cooks for her, including 'chicken nuggets in the air fryer.' 'I miss everything about him,' she said. 'When he gets back, I will give him a really big hug,' Gomes da Silva's younger brother says. 'But ICE, please get him out. Please.' The arrest has sparked outrage among Democratic officials, including Gov. Maura Healey, who demanded information about his location and whether he is being afforded due process. 'They need to let him go,' Healey said in a video posted Tuesday on the social platform X. 'Marcelo belongs in school, not in a detention center.' Other supporters wore white and packed the stands of the high school gymnasium Tuesday night, when the volleyball team dedicated a match to their missing teammate. "We will continue to pray and fight for our brother,' the team said in an Instagram post ahead of the match.
The Independent
6 minutes ago
- The Independent
ICE operation calls for 5,000 federal agents and 21,000 National Guard troops to make deportation arrests
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has launched the Trump administration's largest deportation crackdown yet, calling for more than 5,000 federal agents and 21,000 National Guard troops to join the arrest effort, according to a report. 'Operation at Large' calls for 3,000 ICE agents, 2,000 Justice Department employees, including from the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Agency, 500 Customs and Border Protection staff, and 250 from the IRS, NBC News reports. It follows a 'tense' meeting with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller last month, where he reportedly 'berated' staff and threatened to fire ICE field office leaders who are in the lowest 10 percent of monthly arrest numbers, according to the outlet. The 21,000 National Guard members the administration wants to support ICE have not yet been approved by the Defense Department, NBC reports. Deploying those officials has been 'a source of tension' among some, according to the outlet, who 'feel they have been taken off other core national security missions.' At a meeting in mid-May, Miller and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem demanded immigration agents significantly increase daily arrests to 3,000. Miller, President Donald Trump 's top adviser and architect of the administration's aggressive immigration policies, and Noem told agents they needed to up daily arrests and deportations during the meeting at ICE's headquarters in Washington, D.C. on May 21, according to Axios. The figure is approximately triple the number of daily arrests that ICE agents were making at the beginning of the Trump administration, the outlet noted. While Noem took a 'milder approach' during the meeting, Miller adopted a 'harsh' tone with agents and 'had people leaving the meeting feeling their jobs could be in jeopardy if the new targets aren't reached,' Axios previously reported. Responding to the latest claims about Miller's threats, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told The Independen t: 'Keeping President Trump's promise to deport illegal aliens is something the Administration takes seriously.' 'We are committed to aggressively and efficiently removing illegal aliens from the United States, and ensuring our law enforcement officers have the resources necessary to do so,' she added.
Daily Mail
7 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Raging Dave Portnoy explodes at Barstool employee in furious argument over 'anti-Semitic' podcaster
A furious Dave Portnoy ripped into one of his Barstool Sports employees after clashing over a controversial podcaster he claims is anti-Semitic. On the latest episode of Barstool's The Unnamed Show, regular co-host Kirk Minihane first addressed the elephant in the room by revealing he and Dave had argued the previous day about one of his basketball teammates known as 'Mick'. Portnoy, who is Jewish, recently accused Mick, who also hosts the 'Beyond Average Podcast' with Minihane, of being an anti-Semite over a post he sent to him on X. The post in question, which was a response to Portnoy fuming over a vile anti-Semitic sign that was held up at one of his Philadelphia bars last month, accused the Barstool chief of hypocrisy after alleging that he has said 'multiple racial slurs on camera' himself. Mick also sparked outrage by branding him 'Rabbi Dave' at the start of the message, before adding, 'he's in no place to lecture people on what's okay to say.' When discussing the controversy on The Unnamed Show, Minihane challenged Portnoy when his boss doubled down on his claim that Mick is an 'anti-Semitic piece of s***'. WARNING - Strong language in the clip below. 'Shut up!' - @stoolpresidente 'Don't tell me to shut up' - @kirkmin 'Shut the fuck up you bald fuck! How's that?!' - @stoolpresidente 'I'll never recover from that Dave, go ahead, continue' - @kirkmin 'You work for me! You little bitch' - @stoolpresidente 'For now' - @kirkmin — Viva La Stool (@VivaLaStool) June 4, 2025 'I don't think it makes you anti-Semitic,' he replied. 'I think we just disagree.' Minihane went on to argue that his basketball teammate and podcast co-host should be entitled to make jokes, while Portnoy fired back by insisting that the term 'Rabbi Dave' crossed the line. The latter also claimed that Mick responding to the 'F*** the Jews' sign held up at his bar by accusing him of hypocrisy proves he is anti-Semitic himself. And after they continued to go back and forth for close to 10 minutes, Portnoy and Minihane's dispute eventually turned personal as tempers flared. After Portnoy told his employee to shut up, Minihane said: 'Don't tell me to shut up.' 'Shut the f*** up you bald f***,' Portnoy replied. 'How's that?' 'I'll never recover from that Dave, I'll never recover,' Minihane joked. Portnoy then fumed: 'You work for me you little b****. You work for me.' Mick posted this message to Portnoy on X after the Barstool chief fumed about a vile anti-Semitic sign that was held up at one of his bars last month (above) Minihane responded: 'Sure, you bet. For now.' Before Portnoy said at the end of their fiery spat: 'Oh you don't? For now? Quit, I don't care. You're an idiot.' Eventually the pair cooled down, before Minihane's co-host Ryan Whitney interjected as the discussion slowly returned to normality. 'I think it's entertaining content,' Whitney said. 'I really see Dave's side, [but] I see both sides. I'm kind of a middle man. 'I'll tell you right now, I really didn't think I was signing up for this when we were doing a show talking about Barstool stuff.' Mick, meanwhile, has responded to allegations that he is anti-Semitic on several occasions in recent days. When one user called out his 'Rabbi Dave' post, the podcaster replied on X: 'That's not anti semitic. I was making fun of Dave for being a pandering stooge. Mick responded by accusing Portnoy of being 'afraid to have a real conversation' with him 'Also, if he was a catholic and I called him 'Father Portnoy' nobody would say a word about it. You're being a giant baby as well.' Mick also alleges that Portnoy cancelled one of his scheduled appearances on The Unnamed Show amid their fallout. He quoted a clip of Portnoy's argument with Minihane and said: 'Just a pathetic day for Portnoy. I'm not sure you'll ever see someone so afraid to have a real conversation. 'Also, he can keep saying I'm a 'nobody' but ultimately it's him who's trashing my name each week on his show. Regardless, I appreciate Kirk going to bat for me here.'
