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The Faces of Clemency

Read the stories of the people who Governor Hochul could release TODAY through clemency

Every incarcerated person should have the opportunity to come home. There are thousands of New Yorkers who apply for clemency year after year and never receive a response. Please read and share their stories below! Find twitter graphics of each person’s profile here. Make sure to tag @KathyHochul in any tweets or posts highlighting these stories. If you have a loved one or client with a pending clemency application that you would like highlighted on this page (with their permission), please fill out this form. *Please note* This page is meant to highlight New Yorkers with pending clemency applications; it is not a clemency application submission to the Governor. To officially submit an application, please visit this website.

 
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Shantelle Scruggs

  • Loving mother of 3

  • Won’t be eligible for parole for 11 more years

  • Has not received a single disciplinary infraction, lives in the honors housing wing

  • Should be home

Read Shantelle's Story

Lance Sessoms

  • Serving 75 years to life sentence

  • Has already served 35 years

  • Earned a degree in psychology while in prison

  • Should be home

Read Lance's story

Willie Smith

  • Went to prison at 20 years old

  • Been incarcerated over 35 years

  • Works with at-risk youth, is a peer educator

  • Should be home

Read Willie's Story
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Frank Pruitt

  • Incarcerated 31 years

  • Will not be eligible for parole until 2038

  • Leads weekly Bible study

  • Should be home

Read Frank's Story
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Kim Brown

  • 54 years old

  • Sentenced to 40 years to life

  • HIV/AIDS counselor, AVP facilitator

  • Should be home

Read Kim's Story
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Rodney Chandler

  • Was sent to prison at 17 years old

  • Works in the prison hospice

  • Learned sign language while in prison

  • Should be home

Read Rodney's Story
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Beatrice Camper

  • Serving 15 years to life

  • A domestic abuse survivor, a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother

  • Has many health issues + complications due to Covid

  • Should be home

Read Beatrice's Story
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Matthew Lemon

  • 62 years old and has been incarcerated 40 years

  • Sentenced to 70 years. Will be 93 before he sees parole board

  • Mentors at-risk youth

  • Should be home

Read Matthew's Story
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Julian Castillo

  • Incarcerated when only 16-years-old

  • Earned his GED, Bachelors, and Masters

  • Mentors young people through the Youth Assistance Program

  • Should be home

Read Julian's Story
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Paul Cortez

  • Graduate of Exodus Transitional Services

  • Alternatives to Violence Project facilitator

  • A singer, musician, and published author

  • Should be home

Read Paul's Story
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Kristian Hansen

  • Sentenced to LWOP in 1996

  • Has been denied clemency four times

  • Works with the Youth Assistance Program mentoring youth

  • Should be home

Read Kristian's Story
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Robert Green

  • Sadly, Robert passed away in Coxsackie RMU on September 17, 2022. He should have been home with his family.

  • Sentenced to 51 years to life for a crime he didn’t commit

  • Submitted clemency request in 2012

Read Robert's Story
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Samuel Sabatino

  • Went to prison at 82 years old

  • Was in the ICU in prison for months with Covid and is now disabled because of it

  • A father and grandfather

  • Should be home

Read Samuel's Story

Robert Ehrenberg

  • *Robert was granted clemency in August 2021

Read Robert's Story

Arnold Raimondo

  • *Arnie was granted clemency in December 2020

Read Arnie's Story

Patrick Stephens

  • *Patrick came home on parole in May 2022

Read Patrick's Story

Morris Grady

  • 67 years old

  • Already served 17 years

  • Has completed all required programs and has a supportive wife and family

  • Should be home

Read Morris's Story

Derrick Brown

  • Been incarcerated since 17

  • Sentenced to 35 years to life, already served 31 years

  • Recently accepted into Bard Prison Initiative

  • Should be home

Read Derrick’s Story

Tyrone James

  • Has been incarcerated for over 27 years

  • First submitted a clemency application in 2016

  • Incarcerated at 16

  • Should be home

Read Tyrone's Story

John Moore

  • Sentenced to life without parole at 19

  • Pursuing an Associate’s Degree in the Cornell Prison Education Program

  • Has not received disciplinary infraction in almost 13 years

  • Should be home

Read John's Story

Nashawn Pettway

  • Sentenced to 25 years to life for a crime he didn’t commit

  • Already served 20 years and won’t be parole eligible until September 2028

  • Completed numerous programs and received no disciplinary infractions

  • Should be home

Read Nashawn's Story
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Walter Tyrone Smith

  • Living with COVID 19 and medical complications

  • 73 years old, and has been in prison for 40 years

  • Mentor, educator,counselor

  • Should be home

Read Walter's Story
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“Knowledge” Johnson

  • Incarcerated 40 years

  • Was sentenced to 75 to life

  • Devout and committed Quaker

  • Should be home

Read Knowledge's Story
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Jose Colon

  • Was sent to prison at 17 years old

  • Has served 23 years of a 30-year-to-life sentence

  • Won’t be parole-eligible until 2029

  • Should be home

Read Jose's Story

David Bronson

  • 51 years old

  • Sentenced to 35 years to life

  • Is in the puppies behind bars program

  • Should be home

Read David's Story
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Anthony Ruffin

  • Went to prison at 16 years old

  • Sentenced to 18 years to life

  • Participates in Cornell’s Prison Education Program

  • Should be home

Read Anthony's Story
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Taliyah Taylor

  • Sentenced to 22 years to life

  • Will not be parole-eligible for 7 more years

  • Has multiple letters of support from reentry organizations

  • Should be home

Read Taliyah's Story
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David Sell

  • 45-year-old husband, father, and grandfather

  • Won’t be parole-eligible until 2036

  • Cares for aging & terminally ill in hospice

  • Should be home

Read David's Story
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Craig Jackson

  • Arrested at only 16 years old

  • Facilitator for Alternatives to Violence Project

  • Vice-President and Facilitator for Prisoners for AIDS Counseling and Education

  • Should be home

Read Craig's Story
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Antwon Dennis

  • Serving 25 years to life

  • Has already been in prison for 33 years

  • Wrongfully Convicted

  • Should be home

Read Antwon's Story
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Tracy White

  • Went to prison in his early 20s

  • Has completed numerous programs while incarcerated

  • A father and husband

  • Should be home

Read Tracy's Story

Stanley Bellamy

  • Granted Clemency in April 2023

  • Now works as the NYC Organizer for the RAPP Campaign

Read Stanley's Story

Bryon Russ

  • Granted clemency in April 2023

Read Bryon's Story

Richard “Lee” Chalk

  • *Lee was granted clemency in August 2021

Read Lee's Story

Paul León

  • *Paul came home on parole in August 2022

Read Paul's Story

Ulysses Boyd

  • *Ulysses was granted clemency in August 2021

Read Ulysses' Story

Curtis Tucker

  • *Curtis was granted parole in 2022

Read Curtis's Story

Robert Webster

  • *Robert was granted clemency in September 2022

Read Robert's Story

Tallulah Gillespie

  • Tallulah came home in September 2022

Read Tallulah's Story
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Jacob Rouse

  • 33-year-old husband and father

  • Went to prison at 19 years old, serving 22 years to life

  • Never received disciplinary infraction

  • Should be home

Read Jacob's Story
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Angela Dozier

  • In her 50s

  • Sentenced to 25 years to life, already served 17+ 1/2 years

  • Obtained Associate’s and Bachelor’s degree in prison

  • Should be home

Read Angela's Story

Darr Williams

  • Incarcerated at 21 years old

  • Is now in his 50s, serving over 33 years

  • Mentored more than 7,750 youth in 15 years

  • Should be home

Read Darr's Story
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Barbara James

  • Sentenced to 40 years to life, already served 32 years

  • In her 60s

  • Lives in an honor dorm

  • Should be home

Read Barbara's Story
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Juan Rivas

  • Was sentenced to 16 years maximum at 19 years old

  • Has already served more than half of his sentence

  • Has supportive wife & family to help him transition home

  • Should be home

Read Juan's Story
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Jose “Tony” Medina

  • 66 years old, has served 40 years of his sentence

  • Taught himself how to read and write Spanish & English.

  • A lung cancer survivor, and high risk for Covid

  • Should be home

Read Jose's Story
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Christopher Simmons

  • Has served 70% of sentence

  • Facilitator for Alternatives to Violence Project

  • Learned ASL + worked with visually impaired people

  • Should be home

Read Christopher's Story
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David Moore

  • In 15th year of 25 to life sentence

  • Alternatives to Violence Project facilitator

  • Has obtained multiple trade skills and training certificates

  • Should be home

Read David's Story
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Joy Powell

  • Pastor who organized against police brutality before prison

  • A survivor and activist for women incarcerated with her

  • Serving 16 years on a wrongful conviction

  • Should be home

Read Joy's Story
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Diane Odell

  • Went to prison at age 50 as mother of 8, now grandmom

  • Has served 16 of her 25 years to life sentence

  • Won’t be parole-eligible until 2028

  • Should be home

Read Diane's Story
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Allan Lansbury

  • Went to prison at 15, has been incarcerated for 24 years

  • Has completed numerous programs & mentors youth

  • Applied for clemency this year

  • Should be home

Read Allan's Story
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Robert A. Jones

  • 58 years old, has been in prison 28 years

  • Has been denied parole for 10 years past his minimum sentence

  • A skilled carpenter

  • Should be home

Read Robert's Story
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Brian Hunt

  • 49 years old, went to prison at the age of 16

  • Hasn’t had a disciplinary infraction in 22 years.

  • Not parole-eligible until 2029

  • Should be home

Read Brian's Story
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Glen Smith

  • Sentenced to 25 years with no chance for parole

  • Has already served 16 years

  • Lost his only child at the beginning of this year and has a grandson

  • Should be home

Read Glen's Story

Paul Clark

  • *Paul was granted clemency in August 2021

Read Paul's Story

Freddy Medina

  • *Freddy came home on parole in September 2022

Read Freddy's Story

Greg Mingo

*Greg was granted clemency in August 2021

Read Greg's Story
 

*If you have a loved one or client with a pending clemency application that you would like highlighted on this page (with their permission), please fill out this form. If you are having trouble with the form or have questions, please email Melissa at mntanis89@gmail.com.