Alice Marie Johnson, whose life sentence for a nonviolent drug offense was commuted by President Donald Trump in 2018 after Kim Kardashian advocated on her behalf, is reportedly under consideration for a new role as "pardon czar."
According to sources familiar with the discussions, Trump's advisers are weighing Johnson for a position that would advocate for clemency cases, the New York Times reported.
While details of the role remain unclear, Johnson has long expressed a desire to work on behalf of incarcerated individuals. During Trump's first term, she personally submitted more than 100 clemency petitions to the White House.
In 1996 Johnson was sentenced to life plus 25 years in prison for cocaine possession and money laundering as part of a drug conspiracy. Despite being a first-time, nonviolent offender, she was given a harsh sentence under mandatory minimum sentencing laws, while co-defendants who testified against her received significantly lighter punishments.
Johnson's case gained national attention after a video of her speaking from prison caught the attention of Kardashian, who lobbied Trump for her release. Trump commuted her sentence in 2018 and granted her a full pardon in 2020.
Since her release, Johnson has become a criminal justice reform advocate, frequently praising Trump's First Step Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at reducing sentences for certain offenders.
"I'm so blessed to be free myself," she said. "The work continues."
"Alice Johnson — I let her out. She was in jail for 22 years. She had another 28 years. And the crime was, let's say — I think most of you would agree — was not worthy of a 50-year term in prison," Trump said at the signing ceremony for the First Step Act.
Trump has since distanced himself from the legislation, privately expressing regret for signing it. In his 2024 campaign, Trump took a tough-on-crime stance that included calling for the death penalty for drug dealers.
Immediately upon taking office in 2025, Trump issued clemency to all nearly 1,600 individuals charged in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Neither Johnson nor the White House has commented on the reports of her possible appointment.
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