CAN-DO and Rachel Hanson in Wall Street Journal on Biden’s clemency spree - By Sadie Gurman Updated Apr. 26, 2022 12:17 pm E WASHINGTON—President Biden on Tuesday granted his first pardons and commutations to 78 people...
CAN-DO pot prisoners in New York Post for 420 - Huge thanks to Steven Nelson who quoted many of our pot prisoners in the following article, including, Pedro Moreno, Luke Scarmazzo, Donald Fugitt, Lance...
NBC covers CARES Act cases and Clemency - Sept. 12, 2021, 6:37 AM PDT / Updated Sept. 13, 2021, 9:02 AM PDT By Patrice Gaines Brian Foster was released from prison nearly a year ago under...
Politico Breaks Story about Biden’s CARES Act Clemency Effort - By SAM STEIN 09/13/2021 01:17 PM EDT The Biden administration has begun asking former inmates confined at home because of the pandemic...
High Times focuses on Pot Lifer Ismael Lira - Most Affected: Ismael Lira’s Family Torn Apart as a Cannabis Lifer This edition of Most Affected focuses on Ismael Lira, whose family was torn apart...
CAN-DO President Amy Ralston Povah on Rev Al Sharpton’s Politics Nation about CARES Act - Link below to an interview between Rev Al Sharpton and Amy Ralston Povah discussing the current state of affairs regarding the CARES Act and why... New York Post references three CAN-DO cases: “Biden ‘exploring’ clemency for federal drug crimes” - Biden ‘exploring’ clemency for federal drug crimes, Psaki says By Steven Nelson August 11, 2021 WASHINGTON — President Biden is “exploring” the idea of...
Intercept focuses on marijuana offenders – Diana Marquez and Raquel Esquivel - DIANA MARQUEZ HAS spent the last 14 months going on long walks, hitting the treadmill, and cooking with her daughter. She’s gotten to know her... Politico focuses on CARES Act and Rufus Rochelle – quotes CAN-DO - For weeks, the Biden administration has kept thousands of people in a state of panic by letting a single news report...
Honoring Men in Prison on Father’s Day – Huffpost - This article was written in 2017. Most the men featured in the Huffpost tribute to men in prison for Father’s Day are NOW HOME, including... High Times featured Pot Lifer Pedro Moreno - Most Affected: Pedro Moreno is the Last Brother Still Incarcerated for a Family Pot Operation Pedro Moreno deserves to gain clemency from prison after serving... New York Post spotlights 420 – asks CAN-DO for quotes from cannabis clemency candidates, Ismael Lira and Pedro Moreno - Ismael Lira and Pedro Moreno provided quotes to Steven Nelson regarding their hope for clemency under a Biden administration. On 4/20, pot prisoners ask Biden...
Clemency recipient Chalana McFarland and her daughter Nia on PBS - Watch this extremely poignant segment on PBS entitled Mothers leaving prison encounter uphill battle as they try reconnecting with family that focuses on the reunification... PBS special about Charles “Duke” Tanner’s clemency miracle! - The ability to pardon criminals is a unique power of a president, one that can be politically motivated and often draws criticism. But as Reveal’s...CAN-DO thanks President Trump – Press Release – congrats to several of our clemency candidates! - Multiple CAN-DO Foundation-Supported Prisoners Granted Clemency by President Trump and a FULL PARDON for CAN-DO’s President and Founder – Amy Ralston Povah Washington, D.C., January...
New York Post quotes several CAN-DO clemency candidates in annual Turkey pardon article by Steven Nelson - Trump will “pardon” gobblers named Corn and Cobin an annual tradition at the White House on Tuesday, but in a potential twist, allies and reform advocates...Angela Wright has served over a decade and needs clemency - By Joe ChenApr 3, 2020 Angela Wright, 43, has served approximately 13 years of a 30-year sentence for convictions of conspiracy to distribute and possession with...
Vietnam Vet Michael Montalvo deserves clemency - By April BamburgApr 4, 2020 Michael Montalvo is a Vietnam veteran, father of two, and grandfather of three. CAN-DO Foundation, a criminal justice reform advocacy group,...
Rufus Rochelle deserves clemency per CAN-DO - By April BamburgApr 3, 2020 The CAN-DO Foundation supports Rufus Rochell in his bid for clemency. He was sentenced to 40 years and 8 months on...
CAN-DO backs clemency for Jimmy Romans - By Bob PepalisMay 11, 2020 James Romans has spent nine years in prison working to better himself, including the completion of a 15-month dental assistant apprenticeship....
Peach Tree Times focuses on Chalana McFarland’s clemency campaign - By Juliette FairleyApr 20, 2020 When Chalana McFarland exercised her constitutional right to a trial for alleged mortgage fraud, she didn’t expect to receive harsher sentencing... CAN-DO Foundation supports Pelletier as clemency candidate - By April Bamburg Apr 2, 2020 After President Trump commuted the sentences of multiple inmates in February, advocates are working to raise awareness of the cases...CAN-DO supports Diana Marquez’s clemency - By Juliette FairleyApr 18, 2020 When Diana Marquez was sentenced to prison for money laundering and conspiracy to import and distribute marijuana, she was the young...
CAN-DO supports clemency for LaShonda Hall - When President Trump granted clemency to nearly a dozen people in February, this included Crystal Munoz, 40, who spent 12 years in prison after being... CAN-DO members Rufus Rochell and Chad Marks in Wall Street Journal re: Covid-19 - Prison and jail officials trying to stem the spread of the new coronavirus behind bars are releasing thousands of prisoners to await trial or serve...
Most vulnerable prison population is in great peril… - Roughly 50,000 inmates at federal prisons meet criteria for release to home confinement based on guidelines in the CARES Act, and the Department of Justice... CAN-DO’s Daniel Brown in Wall Street Journal seeking compassionate release - Daniel Brown has sought his release at least five times during his 14 years behind bars. Now the coronavirus pandemic might offer him his greatest...
Crystal Munoz, Tynice Hall and Judith Negron among clemency recipients by President Trump - Advocates for justice overhaul said Mr. Trump should be praised for his interventions. “Some people are trying to bash Trump for letting people circumvent the...
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...
360 Law focuses on John Bolen’s clemency petition and the backlog of other pending petitions - Because he let two Bahamian men use his boat to smuggle 188 kilograms of cocaine into Florida 13 years ago, John Bolen is going to...
Aaron Sandusky’s medical marijuana nightmare – told by Reason - When Sandusky opened a marijuana dispensary in 2009, medical cannabis had been legal for 13 years in California. But in 2011, the feds carried out...
REVEAL’s “Pardon Me” featuring Charles “Duke” Tanner and CAN-DO - CAN-DO’s Amy Ralston Povah was interviewed for the “Pardon Me” episode on Reveal and connected the producer with one of our favorite clemency applicants –...
Rufus Rochell in Daily Beast by Sam Stein - As he watched CNN from inside the federal correctional complex in Coleman, Florida, Rufus Rochell couldn’t suppress his joy at the news of Conrad Black.... Michael Thompson goes viral thanks to Tana Ganeva’s Intercept article - After Tana Ganeva’s article dropped about Michael “Meeko” Thompson, it has gone viral on twitter, thanks to Shaun King, Ava DuVernay, and many more…an attorney...
America’s Voice News covers the First Step Act - America’s Voice News interviewed Amy Ralston Povah, Angela Stanton King and Topeka Sam about the First Step Act and the long road ahead for criminal... NBC interviews Robert Shipp’s sister, Veda to discuss the First Step Act - When NBC called CAN-DO seeking names of people who would benefit from the First Step Act, CAN-DO President Amy Ralston Povah had just the right...
Charles “Duke” Tanner in Chicago Tribune - Charles “Duke” Tanner is an extraordinary case of an undefeated boxer from Gary, Indiana. He’s a first offender serving a 30-year sentence, reduced from LIFE... Clemency: The criminal justice reform Trump can achieve without Congress - President Trump unveiled one of his top legislative priorities before Democrats take over the House of Representatives: passage of the First Step Act, which would... Three CAN-DO members featured in Washington Examiner seeking clemency - CAN-DO was asked to obtain quotes from several of our clemency candidates. Fortunately, we were able to get quotes from Michael Pelletier, Chad Marks and... CAN-DO’s Amy Ralston Povah quoted on prison reform and clemency in Washington Examiner - CAN-DO members Michael Montalvo and Lavonne Roach quoted in the Washington Examiner… “Last month, clemency advocates including Amy Povah of CAN-DO Clemency and Alveda King,...
CAN-DO President Amy Ralston Povah in Episode 1 Podcast: Love vs DEA - Emanuel Sferios (Founder of Dance Safe) and co-host Tatiana Makovkin have kicked off a “risk reduction and benefit enhancement podcast reducing shame and stigma to...
Amy Povah in Salon: “Is there hope…” - Back in the late ’80s, a few years into her marriage to her now ex-husband, Povah discovered that he had been involved in an international...
Yahoo News focuses on 3 CAN-DO clemency candidates - When Alice Marie Johnson, a 63-year-old grandmother serving life in prison for drug trafficking, was granted clemency by President Trump on June 6, a phone...
CAN-DO in USA Today – Alice Johnson’s Clemency - CAN-DO quoted in USA Today, per Gregory Korte on the freedom of Alice Johnson: Watch video and read the story here The Can-Do Foundation, which...
In Justice Today and CANDO focus on BOP memos with harsh consequences - CANDO Foundation worked with reporter Lauren Gill with In Justice Today to get to the bottom of the BOP Memo debacle regarding BOOKS, EMAIL and...
Federal Sentencing Review explores Obama’s clemency initiative - Doug Berman’s Federal Sentencing Reporter, together with Vera Institute engaged in an in-depth review of President Obama’s Clemency Initiative. CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah was asked... Huffpost: “Criminal Justice System’s War on Women” - Clinton-era clemency recipient Amy Ralston Povah is profiled in the following Huffpost article regarding women suffering from overly harsh ‘Department of Justice’ policies: What often... Huffpost Op Ed: We Must Reduce Mass Incarceration in the U.S., Not Escalate It - Huffpost contributor, Amy Povah weighs in on Sessions’ directive that will take this nation back to the Dark Ages of the 90s “dumb on crime,”...
Washington Post, NY Post, NY Daily News, Fox News, Dallas Morning News quotes CAN-DO about Carol Richardson - CAN-DO issued a statement on Friday, June 8th regarding Carol Richardson’s recidivism that was reported widely by the press. Fortunately, we provided some insights that...
CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah in The Hill Pushing CJ Reform - CAN-DO Founder Amy Povah is taking on Senator Tom Cotton because he’s holding up a bipartisan bill for criminal justice reform entitled The Sentencing Reform... Huffpost Op Ed on Federal Halfway House Closures - Due to hundreds of emails, letters and phone calls from prisoners panicking due to halfway house closures, CAN-DO conducted a survey and the results were... The irony of David Barren’s clemency in Reason… - CAN-DO Vice President Anrica Caldwell worked with C.J. Ciarmella, a reporter for Reason to delve into the ironic nature of her fiancé, David Barren’s clemency: “I’ve... Huffpost – Clemency was not wasted on Carol Richardson and here’s why - The CAN-DO Foundation supported Carol Richardson’s clemency. She was #8 on the CAN-DO Top 25 Women that deserved clemency. Her relapse is the perfect example... Huffpost: Still a man’s world…especially for clemency - Published 01/12/2017 03:39 pm ET | An alarming number of women, including first offenders have been denied clemency even if they fit all the criteria... Ferrell Scott and Craig Cesal in Washington Post - On the heels of a list of clemency denials released by the Dept of Justice, on November 29, 2016, reporters reached out to CAN-DO seeking... Reason tackles the conspiracy law using case of CAN-DO President, Amy Povah - CAN-DO President Amy Povah was the focal point of an article in Reason that used her case as an example to emphasize what is wrong... Washington Post – Joy to the lucky and anguish to the disappointed - “It was a great day for those who won the lottery and one more disappointment for everyone in the pipeline who should be on the...
Life of the Law focuses on “Clemency” - A student at Columbia Journalism school, Shandukani Mulaudzi chose to write about the 2014 Initiative on Executive Clemency for her Masters project. To learn more, she...
Amy Povah on Lions of Liberty podcast - Amy Povah was interviewed by John Odermatt for Lions of Liberty’s Felony Friday. She talked about her case, the conspiracy law, clemency and why we...
Malik King on Lions of Liberty podcast - Malik King was interviewed by John Odermatt of Lions of Liberty on April 14th for their segment called Felony Friday, about his communications with prisoners and the...
Podcast of #Cut50’s Jessica Sloan, Brittany Byrd and Amy Povah RE: Dignity for Incarcerated Women Act… - On August 3rd at 8:30 pm ET, Amy Povah, founder of the Clemency for All Nonviolent Drug Offenders (CAN-DO) Foundation, Jessica Jackson, #cut50 National Director...
Truthout focuses on Clemencies and the Guardian Angel Program - Victoria Law, a reporter for Truthout.org has written another exceptional article about clemency and interviewed several of the CAN-DO/Crack Open the Door Guardian Angels who...
Anrica Caldwell’s Op Ed in The Influence - Anrica Caldwell knows all too well what it’s like to stress over the clemency lottery each time the list is released by the White House.... Amy Povah in Reason Magazine on Drug Conspiracy Cases - Amy Povah started CAN-DO to not only promote and spotlight people seeking clemency, she included her desire to educate the public about the conspiracy law...
Revolt TV mini doc on Miquelle West’s quest to free Michelle West - Watch this short documentary by Revolt TV about Miquelle West’s quest to free her mother Michelle West, #2 on the CAN-DO Top 25. ... CAN-DO in High Times – Where are the women? - On President Obama’s last day in office, he granted another 330 commutations to nonviolent drug offenders, bringing his total number of clemencies to 1,715—more than...
Michelle West’s story in Fusion by Casey Tolan - How a woman who’s served 23 years in prison raised her daughter from behind bars by Casey Tolan for Fusion Please read/share this article...
CAN-DO Op Ed in San Francisco Chronicle – Thanksgiving pardons - Instead of sleepwalking through the obligatory turkey “pardon” on the White House Lawn this year, I wish President Obama would grant some real pardons — to humans. There is no better gift than hearing that your loved one has been freed from an unjust sentence. I should know.
Clemency Recipients Angie Jenkins, Ramona Brant and Amy Povah in People Magazine - Angie Jenkins, Ramona Brant and Amy Povah are featured in People’s Online Magazine as the REAL WOMEN of Orange is the New Black. Netflix is...
USA Today interviews Jason Hernandez at CAN-DO VIGIL for POWs at the White House - CAN-DO Founder and President, Amy Ralston Povah has had a busy November – first attending the Koch Institute’s Advancing Justice Summit in New Orleans from... “Weed not a factor” in war on drugs - Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly made headlines for his comments on Sunday’s Meet the Press, when he pronounced that marijuana is “not a... Amy Ralston Pofahl received clemency on July 7, 2000 in SF Chronicle - When Amy Ralston Povah – then Pofahl, received clemency on July 7, 2000, she had no idea when she woke up that day that a... Lori Kavitz in Washington Post and USA Today - Lori Kavitz, #10 on the CAN-DO Top 25 was featured in the Washington Post on November 29, 2016 CAN-DO pitched the story to Tana Ganeva...CAN-DO Influenced Three Articles on Conspiracy Laws: Reason, Huffpost and The Kind - Three informative articles were published this week that focused on conspiracy laws which has been part of the CAN-DO mission statement. All three articles went...
Alice Marie Johnson and CAN-DO in Vocativ - Alice Marie Johnson is #1 on the Top 25 Women Who Deserve Clemency Alice Marie Johnson has been in prison for 20 years, serving a...
CAN-DO in Buzzfeed News - CAN-DO President Amy Povah was interviewed by Buzz Feed and is quoted in the following article, as are two members of the CAN-DO Advisory Board,... Huffpost Op Ed on conspiracy law by Amos Irwin - Amos Irwin reached out to CAN-DO for input regarding the conspiracy law for an Op Ed he authored for Huffpost. He focused heavily on Barbra... Mary Ziman in Truthout: The Need for Compassionate Release – TWO PART SERIES - Victoria Law has written yet another compelling piece on the many negative aspects of mass incarceration. Aging, Sick and Incarcerated: The Need for Compassionate Release...
CAN-DO Foundation in Waging Nonviolence.org 10/12/2015 - Comprehensive article by Victoria Law in WagingNonviolence.org about Amendment 782. Oct. 12, 2015 On October 6, the Justice Department announced that nearly 6,000 people in...
CAN-DO’s Founder, Amy Povah on Ed Kalegi’s America Weekend - On June 22, 2016, Ed Kalegi and Christina Stoffo interviewed CAN-DO President and Founder Amy Povah about her work with the CAN-DO Foundation; the clemency...
CAN-DO worked with BBC on article about Family Members of Clemency Applicants - BBC reporter Jessica Lussenhop contacted the CAN-DO Foundation seeking insight to worked together for over a year after Jessica contacted CAN0DO seeking a connection to...
Amy Povah on Mark Thompson’s “The Edge” I-heart radio show - The Edge starts with a 10 minute blast of politics from political analyst and journalist Michael Shure talking with well known news caster and radio...
CAN-DO in Mother Jones featuring John Knock and Antonio Bascaro: Serving Life for Pot - Obama Just Granted Clemency to a Pot Lifer. But Dozens More Remain Behind Bars. “We have many senior citizens who have already served decades for...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...
CAN-DO in Mother Jones about Pres. Obama’s clemencies - CAN-DO Founder, Amy Ralston Povah was squirming in her seat during the White House convening on Women in Prison on 3/30/2016 because she had just...
Justice Denied: Paul Free’s Two-Decade Plus Quest for Freedom - The ruling might as well have said "Justice Denied." Paul Free, serving a sentence of life without parole for a nonviolent marijuana conspiracy offense he says he can prove he did not commit, is used to such outcomes after more than 20 years of incarceration in a maximum-security federal penitentiary. It’s the reason for this particular denial of justice that is so maddening to him this time.
