First Step Act recipient Catherine Toney goes to the White House - Catherine Toney has been profiled on the CAN-DO website for many years. We thought she would get clemency from the Obama administration because she not only met all the criteria of the Clemency Project 2014, she was assigned a CP14 attorney from Duke University who filed her petition, but sadly, she never received a response […]
Clemency and Pardon FAQs - As someone who has actually been through the process of filing and receiving executive clemency (I served 9 years of a 24 year sentence before being granted clemency by President Clinton), I thought I would share some important factual information that may help our understand the Pardon Process. Q and A about Pardons Q. What is […]
CAN-DO’s official statement regarding BOP Book memo - The CAN-DO Foundation has been notified (May 3) that the BOP has finally issued a statement regarding the BOP Book policy which will be suspended. We are not convinced it has been “cancelled” so we wait to see what the new memo says. Ann Marimow at the Washington Post wrote the latest update on the […]
CAN-DO Foundation communicates directly with every prisoner on our site - Since 2000, Amy Ralston Povah, president and Founder of CAN-DO Foundation has advocated on behalf of others seeking justice through clemency. The CAN-DO Foundation website does not collect or compile the information on this site by surfing the internet. We communicate directly with almost every prisoner and/or their family members on the CAN-DO website. In […]
Welcome to CAN-DO: Justice Through Clemency - CAN-DO is a 501(c) 3 nonprofit foundation that advocates [C]lemency for [A]ll [N]on-violent [D]rug [O]ffenders. These are the faces of the drug war. Behind every face is a human with a story. Overly punitive drug laws create negative consequences that trigger a chain reaction upon innocent family members, friends and our society. Most of these people have been locked up for decades. Until our drug laws change, the only relief these people have for mercy is clemency.Video Project - THIS PROJECT HAS ALREADY REACHED ITS DEADLINE AND IS NO LONGER SEEKING VIDEOS CAN-DO has been tasked with making a video of formerly incarcerated people and family members of currently incarcerated people that we hope to share at several events, this year. The intent is to show how many perfectly normal, wonderful people are […]
Watch our 7 minute video of women who have received clemency!!! - The CAN-DO Foundation is a 501(c) (3) that operates on a volunteer basis. Not one person working for CAN-DO receives a salary. We are small group of formerly incarcerated people. Most the people in our Guardian Angel program are formerly incarcerated or a family member of a clemency applicant who currently has a clemency petition […]Federal Sentencing Guideline Chart - It’s important to understand how federal defendants are sentenced by judges who no longer have the ability to judge the mitigating circumstances of any given human being standing before them. Doesn’t matter if a woman was a victim of well documented domestic violence and had no ability to leave a drug dealer, or if a […]
RIP: Ramona Brant received clemency on 12/18/15, set FREE on 2/2/2016 and tragically passed 2/25/18 - I don't have any fines so if I am fortunate enough to receive clemency, I will not be in debt and will have the support of my family to assist me with re-entry, and rebuilding my life anew. I yearn to participate in making not only my life but the lives of everyone I touch better because I will never take freedom and all its luxuries for granted. I will embrace every day as if it is a blessing.
Walter Johnson – Winner of EPIC “Meaning of Father’s Day” contest - Malik King – Founder of EPIC (End Prison Industrial Complex) conducted a contest among the male prisoners he corresponds with and asked them to write what Father’s Day meant to them. Congratulations to Walter Tut Johnson, Maurice Navarro Brooks and Vincent Lee Twiggs FIRST PLACE WINNER – $25 prize What Does Father’s Dat Mean To […]
13 Women Seek a Reconsideration for Clemency! - Please President Obama, set these women free! These women is this video presentation are seeking a reconsideration for clemency. Only 76 women have received clemency from President Obama, to date. Some first offenders with impeccable prison conduct have been denied – all of these women are worthy candidates: Rita Beccera, Linda Byrnes, Patricia Cooney, Karen […]
LaShonda Hall is a perfect candidate for clemency – what went wrong? - The Guardian Angel Program was designed to help prisoners seeking clemency. We have a team of volunteers, or “Angels” who communicate, one on one, and advocate on behalf of an applicant, and that doesn’t stop in the event they are denied. In fact, when a worthy clemency applicant, such as LaShonda Hall is denied, we […]
Sign Our Petition Urging President Obama to Free the Top 25 - The Top 25 Women Deserving Presidential Clemency is a list of extraordinarily worthy women whose time in federal prison should end. These women are serving multi-decade and life without parole sentences for non-violent drug offenses. (video & petition link included)Do’s and Don’ts When Writing to the Pardon Attorney or President - Dos and Don’ts when writing the Pardon Attorney If this is the first time a prisoner is filing, they should have exhausted all of their appeals before seeking executive clemency, except you can file a compassionate release while a clemency petition is pending or vice/versa. Also, these are TIPS to help people navigate the process, but […]
Clemency Recipients go to the White House, including CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah - On March 30, and 31st, CAN-DO President and Founder Amy Povah spent two days at the White House attending events focused on Women and the Criminal Justice System and Life After Clemency. But that’s not all. Nkechi Taifa, a senior policy analyst for civil and criminal justice reform at the Open Society Foundations, who pitched the Life […]
Celebs and Clemency Recipients Speak on Capitol Hill, including CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah - The Leadership Conference, ACLU and #CUT50 partnered for a spectacular day on Capitol Hill, March 31st, to lobby for The Fair Sentencing and Corrections Act of 2015. Listen to speeches by celebs and a panel discussion moderated by Van Jones asking clemency recipients why this legislation must be passed. CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah gave the […]
Women of FCI Dublin Commemorate CP14 in a Quilt for Obama - The CAN-DO Foundation reached out to the women of FCI Dublin to engage in a project that would commemorate President Obama’s legacy of compassion in a quilt made by the prisoners, relative to Clemency Project 2014. Special material reflective of Obama’s African heritage and home state of Hawaii were chosen, a “court-house steps” pattern, symbolic […]Watch the CAN-DO video of clemency recipients and applicants in front of the White House – 2016 - CAN-DO was tasked with the almost impossible job of creating a film for the events surrounding the White House Briefing on Life After Clemency. CAN-DO and Harm Reduction Productions teamed up with Earthstream Media to produce a video of that would put a face on the invisible lives of prisoners seeking clemency. We asked family […]
How to Enhance Your Chances for Clemency - Executive Clemency Petition in Malibu, CA Tips Prisoners Can Use to Enhance Chances at an Executive Clemency Petition in Malibu, CA. If you are going to file a clemency petition please do not re-hash the particulars of your case. This is not the time to re-litigate, rather a time to accept responsibility, express remorse, and […]
Miquelle West Introduces Amy to Russell Simmons - Meet My New BFF by Amy Ralston Povah On April 26th, Miquelle West, fashion stylist extraordinaire for Sean Combs company, Revolt TV and daughter of drug war lifer, Michelle West, came to Malibu so we could finally meet in person. This woman is so amazing, so talented, so wise beyond her years that I never […]
Cathy Lee Jones Receives Clemency – 12/17/14 - CAN-DO NEWSFLASH CATHY LEE JONES received a commutation of her sentence by President Obama on December 17th, 2014. She is currently scheduled to be released in April, 2015. CAN-DO congratulates Cathy for her endurance and perseverance! Miracles can happen – Cathy is proof! Name: Cathy Lee Jones DOB: March 1, 1961 Age: 53 Children: […]