Trump commutes sentence of Chicago gang founder after lobbying by Ye
But on Wednesday, President Donald Trump commuted the six life sentences that Hoover, a Chicago gang founder, was serving for a 1997 conviction in federal court.
Trump commuted the sentences after a campaign by hip-hop artist Ye, aka Kanye West, now Kim Kardashian's ex-husband, who has lobbied Trump in the Oval Office to consider releasing Hoover.
Hoover, though, will not be freed. He will be transferred from the federal 'Supermax' prison in Colorado, where is held now, to a state prison in Illinois to serve the rest of a 200-year sentence for crimes he was separately convicted of in state court.
Hoover founded the Gangster Disciples, a Chicago-based criminal organization that sold cocaine and other narcotics beginning in the early 1970s.
Called the 'chairman of the board' and 'the king' of the gang, he was also declared 'one of the most notorious criminals in Illinois history.' Prosecutors have said in court filings that 'Hoover directed violence and drug trafficking in Chicago from at least 1970 until 1995.'
Prosecutors presented evidence at trial that the Gangster Disciples profited $109 million each year from the sale of narcotics, 'a substantial proportion of which went straight to Hoover's family's pockets.'
Praise for the commutation
Hoover's attorneys praised Trump's decision.
'The Courts have demonstrated a complete unwillingness to consider Mr. Hoover's considerable growth and complete rehabilitation,' Jennifer Bonjean and Justin Moore told CBS News in a statement.
'Despite the Court's unwillingness to do the right thing, Mr. Hoover has been able to keep his voice alive through the incredible work of many advocates and supporters," they added. "Thankfully, Mr. Hoover's pleas were heard by President Trump who took action to deliver justice for Mr. Hoover.'
Larry Hoover Jr., Hoover's son, has called for his father's release for years and was featured in the 2021 Kanye West song 'Jesus Lord.'
Hoover has said from prison that he changed the name of his group from 'Gangster Disciples' to 'Growth and Development.' He said he now discourages violence and has made education mandatory for his followers, pushing inmates to develop job skills they can use after they are released.
Hoover's family has said he is no longer associated with the Gangster Disciples.
Prosecutors opposed release
But federal prosecutors recently have said Bureau of Prisons intelligence records show that Hoover did not want to be disassociated from the gang.
In September, attorneys for the Justice Department argued in court that 'Hoover remains the heralded leader of the GDs, despite the intensive monitoring to which he is subject at Florence ADX,' which is the highest-level security prison in the United States and home to convicted terrorists and Juán "El Chapo" Guzmán.
They strongly urged the court to decline any effort to release Hoover as part of the 'First Step Act' supported by Kardashian, which Trump signed into law during his first administration.
'Hoover has well earned his life sentence, and he is not the type of defendant Congress intended to benefit in enacting the First Step Act,' prosecutors wrote.
During the 2108 Oval Office meeting with Trump, Ye urged him to commute Hoover's sentence.
'The reason why they imprisoned him is because he started doing positive for the community,' Ye said. 'He started showing that he actually had power, that he wasn't just one of a monolithic voice, but he could wrap people around.
'So there's theories that there's infinite amounts of universe and there's alternate universe,' Ye added. 'So it's very important for me to get Hoover out, because in an alternate universe, I am him. And I have to go and get him free because he was doing positive inside of Chicago.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Press and Journal
an hour ago
- Press and Journal
Protestors rally near Donald Trump's Balmedie golf course with signs saying 'make Aberdeenshire great again'
Protestors marched in Balmedie, just a stone's throw from Donald Trump's Aberdeenshire golf course, to protest the US president's visit. Mr Trump is currently in Scotland on a four-day 'private' trip, visiting his golf courses in Ayrshire and Aberdeenshire. He arrived in the north-east this evening, along with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. The highly publicised trip is atypical for a sitting US president to make, but Mr Trump is here to open his latest golf course, Trump International Scotland, near Balmedie. The Macleod course is named after his Scottish mother and has been in the works for years. However, Mr Trump's visit to Aberdeenshire has been met with backlash and protests, along with heightened security in several places, including Lossiemouth and Balmedie. Dozens of protestors marched from the White Horse Bar down to the border of the US President's golf course. Jenna Halpin, from Aberdeen, also attended a previous protest in the city at the weekend. She said: 'I am disgusted that this visit has been allowed to be honest. 'The fact that it's costing so many millions of pounds for this man to go on a golf jolly is ridiculous. 'There is so much going on in the world. The fact is he and Starmer are sitting having lunch while children in Gaza starve. 'Everything about the man stinks, and we need to show him he is not welcome here.' Jenna says people who have been quiet before are now speaking out. Protestors brought an array of creative signs on their march, including inventing the term 'MAGA' into 'Make Aberdeenshire Great Again'. Others included 'Children starve, Trump plays golf' and 'Food not bombs'. Two protestors even brought Trump-themed toilet brushes with them. Luca Quinn told the Press and Journal why he decided to come from Fife to protest. He said: 'I just wanted the opportunity to show that we Scots want nothing to do with Donald Trump. 'Having him in our country goes against everything I hold dear. 'The state of his country at the moment, he should really be there and not coming anywhere near ours.' Luca added: 'It's infuriating the number of police officers here today. 'He should be footing the bill himself.' Many of the protestors echoed those same thoughts that the money spent on policing and security could have been better spent. One protester said: 'Trump is the figurehead for a lot of the awful things going on in the world at the moment, and we should not be inviting him into our country. 'Security has been really over the top. 'Considering he's only spending 24 hours at Balmedie, the beach has been shut for four days. 'It doesn't seem proportionate.' The latest demonstration comes after a large protest took place over the weekend in Aberdeen city centre. A crowd gathered outside Union Terrace Gardens to voice their opposition to the visit, with key north-east representatives including MSP Maggie Chapman in attendance.
Press and Journal
an hour ago
- Press and Journal
When Donald Trump visited his mum's Lewis home 'for 40 seconds' - from someone who was there
In 2008, long before MAGA and the White House, Donald Trump made his only visit to the Western Isles. A fleeting appearance in the crofting village of Tong drew cameras, raised eyebrows, and left islanders more bemused than starstruck. Travelling with his sister, Maryanne Trump Barry — a retired US federal judge and fluent Gaelic speaker — Mr Trump came in search of their mother's birthplace. The modest family home they visited was where Mary Anne MacLeod was born in 1912. Press and Journal photographer Sandy McCook was there to document the moment. 'His private jet, with TRUMP on the side, flew right over us,' he recalled. 'And he came with a security detail, which caught the local police completely off guard.' Mr Trump met cousins Alasdair and Calum Murray, spent 'about 40 seconds' inside the house, then held a press conference at the Old Sawmill at Lews Castle. 'It was surreal,' said Sandy. 'He said he'd been at a concert the night before with 'his friend' Elton John. 'When asked how he'd fund the still-to-be-completed Menie golf course during the looming crash, he said 'When the banks run out of money, they come to me'.' Maryanne, meanwhile, downplayed any official role, telling reporters she was simply there for 'moral support.' She even answered a question in Gaelic, a gesture that won hearts on the island. Mr Trump described the croft house as his mother's 'Scotch house' and left by mid-afternoon. Back then, he was still a reality TV host and property mogul — known more for The Apprentice than politics. But for Lewis, his whirlwind visit was a strange collision of island quiet and global celebrity. 'It was hard to believe it actually happened,' said Sandy. 'And just like that, he was gone.' A moment in history — Hebridean style.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Abrego Garcia's lawyers want smuggling charges dismissed on grounds of vindictive prosecution
Lawyers for Kilmar Abrego Garcia asked a federal judge on Tuesday to dismiss a human smuggling case against him, saying the government was prosecuting the Maryland construction worker to punish him for challenging his removal to El Salvador. Their motion filed in court said attempts to dismiss indictments on the grounds of 'selective or vindictive prosecution' are infrequent and rarely succeed, 'but if there has ever been a case for dismissal on those grounds, this is that case.' The attorneys said senior cabinet members, Justice Department leaders and President Donald Trump mounted unprecedented public attacks on Abrego Garcia and that 'vindictiveness is clear from the record.' Acting U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire in Tennessee, where Abrego Garcia is in jail, said in an email prosecutors would have no other comment beyond what they file in response to the motion. No prosecutor motion was filed as of late Tuesday. Abrego Garcia became a prominent face in the debate over Trump's immigration policies following his wrongful expulsion to El Salvador in March. Trump's administration violated a U.S. immigration judge's order in 2019 that shields Abrego Garcia from deportation to El Salvador because he likely faces threats of gang violence there. The administration claimed Abrego Garcia was in the MS-13 gang, although he wasn't charged and has repeatedly denied the allegation. Facing mounting pressure and a U.S. Supreme Court order, the Trump administration returned Abrego Garcia to the U.S. in June to face the smuggling charges, which his attorneys have called 'preposterous.' Tuesday's motion alleged the government was trying to paint Abrego Garcia as a criminal to punish him for challenging his removal to El Salvador and to avoid 'the embarrassment of accepting responsibility for its unlawful conduct." The motion said the government also aimed to change public opinion about Abrego Garcia's deportation. Abrego Garcia's attorneys asked the court at least to order a hearing on the government's motives. The smuggling case stems from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding, during which Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle with nine passengers. Police in Tennessee suspected human smuggling, but he was allowed to drive on. A federal judge in Maryland last month prohibited the Trump administration from taking Abrego Garcia into immediate immigration custody if he's released from jail. The judge ordered the government to provide three business days notice if Immigration and Customs Enforcement intends to initiate deportation proceedings against him.
