Former prisoner Alice Johnson has spoken out for the first time since being pardoned by President Trump and released from prison. The 63-year-old was sentenced to life in prison back in 1997 after being convicted on a range of drug charges. But following a lengthy campaign for her early release, spearheaded by TV personality Kim Kardashian West, President Trump granted her freedom. The stunning decision came after Kardashian West met the President at the White House last week.
According to Ms. Johnson’s lawyer, Brittany K Barnett, Kardashian West personally called the inmate to deliver the wonderful news. Overwhelmed with emotion, Alice said it feels like she has been “resurrected from the dead and she has her life back,'” according to the BBC.
The phone call I just had with Alice will forever be one of my best memories. Telling her for the first time and hearing her screams while crying together is a moment I will never forget.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) June 6, 2018
For Johnson, her release meant a highly emotional reunion with her 45-year-old daughter, who she has been separated from for the past 22 years. “We are going to appreciate every single moment that we have. Sometimes, we take family and life for granted. I’ll never do that again,” Johnson told the TODAY show.
Johnson told Good Morning America that the experience of walking free through the prison gates gave her “the most exhilarating feeling ever.”
“It was, for a moment, shock,” she added. “Just to see my family there. I knew that I walked out of the door, that was the first shock, to see them. My heart was leaping.”
So grateful to @realDonaldTrump, Jared Kushner & to everyone who has showed compassion & contributed countless hours to this important moment for Ms. Alice Marie Johnson. Her commutation is inspirational & gives hope to so many others who are also deserving of a second chance.
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) June 6, 2018
“Ms Johnson has accepted responsibility for her past behavior and has been a model prisoner over the past two decades,” the White House said in a statement. “Despite receiving a life sentence, Alice worked hard to rehabilitate herself in prison, and act as a mentor to her fellow inmates.”
Good luck to Alice Johnson. Have a wonderful life!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 7, 2018
“I’m just so thankful,” Johnson said of her release, and certainly feels that she has done her time. “I’m not bitter about it,” she added. “I’m just happy that it has come to an end.”
She is also extremely grateful to Kim Kardashian West for campaigning on her behalf, declaring that the Lord clearly stirred her to action in a powerful way.
“I know that it was a miracle,” she said. “I know that only God could have touched Kim Kardashian’s heart like that.”
“We have connected. She said that she felt something when she saw and heard my story. I’m just so thankful for it. I can’t explain it. It’s a miracle.”
Now, she hopes that more convicts will be granted a second chance at life and is determined to help reform the prison system, campaigning for an increase in compassionate rehabilitation programs.
“Please, please, remember us, the others who have been left behind because there are so many,” she said. “I want to take this chance to try to magnify what has happened with me so that people will remember that there are other people just like me who are first time, non-violent offenders, who pose no safety risks to their communities. I can’t just walk away and forget about those who have been left behind.”