Alice Marie Johnson is a 62-year-old great-grandmother who is currently over two decades into a life sentence for a nonviolent drug offense. It was her first offense. Last week, we reported that Kim Kardashian was working to get a presidential pardon for Johnson. Today, Kim opened up about why she feels so passionate about this case in a new interview with Mic.
Kim got involved by watching Mic’s video on Johnson released in October of last year. Kim said she has her personal attorney, Shawn Chapman, involved in the case, and the two are on a mission to increase awareness around Johnson’s story. “I think that she really deserves a second chance at life,” Kim said.
This is so unfair... https://t.co/W3lPINbQuy
"If you think about a decision that you’ve made in your life and you get life without the possibility of parole for your first-time nonviolent offense, there’s just something so wrong with that," Kim argued.
Kim said that Johnson’s story touched her in particular because Alice’s character and family life were showcased in the Mic video, but she has since missed many milestones, like the death of her own parents and the birth of her great-grandson.
"Where I’m at in my life right now, just like, to go and spend my money buying material things just doesn’t satisfy me the way that it used to,” Kim said, acknowledging that she has not spoken out about this or related issues much in the past. “To save someone’s life...that would make [my] heart fuller."
Kim said that Johnson’s story touched her in particular because Alice’s character and family life were showcased in the Mic video, but she has since missed many milestones, like the death of her own parents and the birth of her great-grandson.
Johnson’s fate lies in President Trump’s hands, as the only way to release her is through clemency. In order to do this, Kim first hired Johnson a different legal team. She has also been working with Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law. "I’ve been in communication with the White House and trying to bring her case to the president’s desk and figure out how we can get her out," she added. "That’s such a huge step from where we started with that not even being on their radar."
Finally, Kim shied away from saying whether she supports Trump or not (which she has previously suggested is not the case, despite her husband Kanye West’s very public support of him.) Instead, Kim is laser focused on criminal justice reform and “helping one person at a time.” With that said, Kim also said that Johnson is just the first of many people she wants to help with her platform, influence, and, let’s face it, healthy bank account.
Back in October, when Johnson spoke to Mic, she expressed deep regret for the mistake she made. She got involved in drug trafficking after a series of rough events—including loss of her job, the foreclosure of her house, her son’s death, and a divorce—put her in a difficult financial situation. “I felt like a failure,” Johnson said back then. “I went into a complete panic and out of desperation, I made one of the worst decisions of my life to make some quick money. I became involved in a drug conspiracy.”
