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12 December 1 • 2016 O n Aug. 3, 2016, President Barack Obama sent a letter to Samuel Grooms of Clinton Township, an inmate at Marion Federal Penitentiary in Illinois, announcing presidential clemency. Grooms, who had already served more than 13 years of a life sentence, can now expect to be released in the next three years due to a combination of actual time he served, good time credit he's accrued and the fact that federal prisoners usually transition out at 85 percent of their sentences. The president's letter states, in part: "The power to grant pardons and clemency is one of the most profound authorities granted the president of the United States. It embodies the basic belief in our democracy that people deserve a second chance after having made a mistake in their lives that led to a conviction under our laws." Obama concludes his letter: "I believe in your ability to prove the doubters wrong and change your life for the bet- ter. So good luck, and Godspeed." The president has accelerated grants of clemency in recent months. As of Oct. 27, Obama had used his power of clemency to grant 872 prisoners short- ened sentences. He intends to consider requests for clemency from all prisoners convicted of non-violent drug offenses before his term concludes in January, according to the Justice Department; experts estimate this group includes about 1,500 prisoners nationwide. Local attorney Alona Sharon had filed the paperwork on behalf of Grooms to bring the case to the president's atten- tion. Grooms began serving a life sentence for a non-violent drug offense because, in 1994, Congress legislated manda- tory enhanced sentences. Prosecutors could negotiate plea bargains for shorter sentences but, if the case went to trial, judges had no discretion: A third-time offender would get life in prison without the opportunity for parole. So when a young woman picked up her suitcase at Detroit airport and officers found 4 kilograms of heroin in it, she pleaded guilty and received a sen- tence of two years in prison plus three years' probation; the man who came to pick up the suitcase pleaded guilty and received a sentence of only proba- tion; the man who repeatedly called to inquire about the delivery, Samuel Grooms, who had prior convictions, went to trial and received a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibil- ity of parole. The judge, Bernard A. Friedman, as he issued Grooms' sentence, remarked, "I feel bad. I mean, I really do, but I think I have no choice in the matter … I just want this record to clearly reflect that if I had a choice, it would not be life, that's for sure." And then, in August 2013, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder issued guidelines instructing prosecutors not to seek enhanced sentences for low-level drug dealers who have not committed violent offenses. Holder particularly wished to avoid widely disparate sen- tences for individuals convicted of equal participation in the same offense. The Holder guidelines would lessen penalties for future convicts, but many federal prisoners — among them Grooms — had already received the enhanced sentence of mandatory life imprisonment. U.S. Deputy Attorney General James Cole called for the legal community to help find these prisoners and to file papers requesting presidential commutations for them. Clemency Project 2014, founded in response to Cole's request, recruited vol- unteer attorneys to help these prisoners for no payment. When Alona Sharon volunteered with metro » o n t h e c o v e r Attorney Alona Sharon helps non-violent drug offender win clemency. Fighting For Justice Louis Finkelman | Contributing Writer 20 N. Wacker Drive, Suite 2020 Chicago, IL 60606 The Hebrew University of Jerusalem RESEARCH ENGINE FOR THE WORLD. ENGINE OF GROWTH FOR A NATION. 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