Today, along with issuing grants of clemency to Darryl Chamber, Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Don Leonard Scott, Jr., Ravidath “Ravi” Ragbir, and Robin Peoples, all of whom exemplify the power of transformation and rehabilitation, President Biden issued executive clemency to former client of the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) Kemba Smith Pradia, as well as Michelle West, both of whom were aggressively prosecuted amid the War on Drugs due to their association with violent partners who were convicted of drug-related crimes.
Kemba Smith Pradia and Michelle West were collectively incarcerated for almost 40 years under mandatory federal sentencing laws that did not allow for consideration of the abuse they endured from her partner. Ms. Smith Pradia was sentenced to 24.5 years in prison for a nonviolent drug offense, and after 7 years of incarceration, President Clinton commuted her sentence and she was released in 2000. Twenty-five years later, Ms. Smith Pradia has finally received a full pardon from President Biden, which at long last fully expunges her criminal record, and West’s life sentence was commuted. Today’s actions further solidify President Biden’s legacy as a leader committed to rectifying deeply entrenched harms perpetuated by the criminal legal system.
In 1996, LDF took on Ms. Smith Padia’s case pro-bono and helped secure the commutation of her federal prison sentence under the leadership of former LDF President and Director-Counsel Elaine Jones and then Associate Director-Counsel Theodore Shaw.
Since Ms. Smith Pradia’s release, she has received a Bachelor’s degree in social work. She has served on Virginia’s parole board and advised senior officials from Congress, state houses, the White House, and the United Nations. She has received numerous awards for her commitment to educating people on the injurious consequences of drug policies and being an inspiring force for young people. Ms. Pradia Smith is also the author of a memoir, Poster Child, which details her experience in the criminal legal system and is the basis of a film produced by BET titled Kemba.
In reaction to President Biden’s most recent clemency actions, LDF President and Director-Counsel Janai Nelson issued the following statement:
“The Legal Defense Fund is deeply grateful to President Biden for exercising his clemency powers to bring redress to seven additional people, following his historic clemency actions that have provided relief to a total of more than 4,200 people throughout this administration. We are also elated by the tremendous step President Biden has taken to help correct the historic injustice of ‘girlfriend crimes’ by pardoning Kemba Smith Pradia and commuting Michelle Smith’s life sentence along with granting clemency to other individuals. ‘Girlfriend crimes’, which ensnare women in the criminal legal system as a result of their romantic associations, have subjected Black women to some of the criminal legal system’s harshest penalties, often for little more than being in troubled relationships with coercive partners.
“The consequences of those penalties have extended far beyond the years Kemba Smith Pradia spent languishing behind bars with no reprieve and the collateral consequences relegated her to a form of second-class citizenship where she re-entered society but could not fully participate in it. Thanks to President Biden’s actions, Kemba Smith Pradia will now have the opportunity to engage with her country and her community without the hindrances of a criminal record, and society will have the opportunity to receive the full benefit of her talents.”
LDF’s former Presidents and Directors-Counsel Elaine Jones and Theodore Shaw issued the following statements on President Biden’s pardon of Ms. Smith Pradia:
Elaine Jones, who served as President and Director Counsel from 1993 to 2004 and led LDF’s efforts to represent Mrs. Smith Pradia, said:
“When I first read Kemba’s story, I found it unconscionable that someone with no criminal record and no direct involvement in the crimes for which she was being punished had been given such a draconian sentence. That is why I was proud to lead the Legal Defense Fund’s efforts to come to her aid alongside then-LDF associate counsel George Kendall, and fight for her release and for an end to the system of injustice that has led to exorbitant and disproportionate incarceration rates for Black people. Today’s action by President Biden is an incredible moment for Kemba, whose resilience and eloquence over the past 30 years has been an inspiration to women across the globe, and for the countless women who have suffered unjust consequences for the actions of their romantic partners.”
Ted Shaw, who served as President and Director Counsel from 2004 to 2008 and was instrumental in her release from prison, said:
“As the first person who greeted Kemba upon her release from federal prison, I am beyond thrilled to congratulate her for finally reaching the end to this long, arduous leg of her journey to close this chapter of her life. President Biden’s pardon marks the culmination of Kemba’s 30-year saga through a system that has undergone many necessary reforms but fell short of offering respite to many of those who had been tangled up in its broad and complicated web.”
Kemba Smith Pradia, author, speaker, and a recipient of today’s executive clemency, said:
“I want to extend my deepest gratitude to President Biden and his administration for their commitment to criminal justice reform and their belief in the transformative power of second chances. I also want to thank the advocates, legal teams, organizations, and communities whose tireless work and dedication have changed lives.
“Even more powerful is the news that after 32 years, my dear friend, Michelle West, has received a commutation and will be reunited with her daughter, Miquelle. Michelle’s journey is a reminder that hope, when paired with determination, can open the doors of possibility—even in the darkest times.
“The President’s decision reflects the growing recognition that many of the harsh sentences imposed during the height of the War on Drugs caused immeasurable harm, particularly to women who have experienced intimate partner violence and communities of color. But this moment is not just about Michelle and me. It is about the countless individuals—mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters—who remain incarcerated under unjust circumstances. It is about the families who have suffered in silence, longing for reunification and healing. It is about a justice system that we must continue to reform so that mercy and fairness become the rule, not the exception.”
Beyond Kemba Smith Pradia and Michelle West, among the others who received executive clemency today are a leading voice on gun violence prevention, immigrant justice, and the Black liberation movement, the first Black speaker of Virginia’s House of Delegates, and another who has demonstrated remarkable rehabilitation while serving an excessively long sentence.
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Founded in 1940, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) is the nation’s first civil rights law organization. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the Legal Defense Fund or LDF. Please note that LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights.