Kim Kardashian has snubbed former US President Donald Trump after he granted clemency to an inmate despite working with him on prison reform during his presidency.
The Keeping Up with the Kardashians star neglected to publicly thank Trump for commuting the life sentence of Chris Young, who was released on Thursday.
In an Instastory, the 40-year-old aspiring lawyer wrote that her ‘heart was full’ as she thanked the 32-year-old ex-con’s attorney Brittany K. Barnes, Judge Kevin H. Sharp, REFORM Alliance CAO Jessica Jackson, and Alice Marie Johnson.
The former president was noticeably absent from the list of people Kardashian mentioned.
The reality star turned prisoners rights activist has worked with the White House on criminal justice reform issues since 2018, and has slowly gained a reputation for herself as an influential advocate for criminal justice reform.
Dissed! Keeping Up with the Kardashians star Kim Kardashian (R, pictured in 2019) neglected to publicly thank former President Donald Trump (L) for commuting the life sentence of Chris Young, who was released on Thursday
In an Instastory, the 40-year-old aspiring lawyer wrote that her ‘heart was full’ as she thanked the 32-year-old ex-con’s attorney Brittany K. Barnes, Judge Kevin H. Sharp, REFORM Alliance CAO Jessica Jackson, and Alice Marie Johnson
‘It brings tears to my eyes to see Judge Sharp welcome him home. He was forced to sentence him to a life sentence based on mandatory minimums and ended up resigning due to these injustices,’ Kim – who boasts 304.8M social media followers – wrote on Sunday.
‘Judge Sharp and I went to the White House a few years ago asking for clemency for @thechrisyoung_2021. He’s so deserving and smart and I can’t wait to see all he accomplishes in this life! I worked on this case with Barnett for years so this victory is so sweet!’
Trump granted pardons to 143 people last Wednesday including Chris, who was 26 when he received a ‘three-strikes’ mandatory life sentence for federal drug and firearm charges.
After working in a funeral home, Young reportedly became increasingly involved with drug dealing in the Clarksville, Tennessee area.
In December 2010, he was charged with drug offenses by Federal prosecutors for being in possession of marijuana and a half a gram of cocaine. Prosecutors accused Young of being involved in drug trafficking in the Clarksville, Tennessee area and said he was buying crack cocaine from the leader of an illegal drug ring at a local gas station.
Young was specifically charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine and other drug and firearm-related charges. Initially offered a plea deal that included a 14-year term in prison, he rejected the offer to take his case to trial.
The new charges against Young subsequently triggered Federal ‘three-strikes’ laws against him if he was found guilty and he was ultimately convicted in August 2013 and sentenced to life in prison in 2014.
Kardashian successfully pushed for Trump to free him after appealing to the White House to grant him clemency.
‘Fortunately, we have men like Judge Sharp that had the courage and temerity to speak out against our unjust system,’ Young said at a Tennessee airport on Thursday.
‘And we had women like Kim Kardashian who was willing to use her celebrity to help bring attention towards that. And fortunately, we had President Trump there [who] was willing enough to put a pencil to paper to correct some of the wrongs.’
Kim wrote on Sunday: ‘It brings tears to my eyes to see Judge Sharp welcome him home. He was forced to sentence him to a life sentence based on mandatory minimums and ended up resigning due to these injustices’
Kardashian continued: ‘Judge Sharp and I went to the White House a few years ago asking for clemency for @thechrisyoung_2021. He’s so deserving and smart and I can’t wait to see all he accomplishes in this life! I worked on this case with Barnett for years so this victory is so sweet!’ (pictured in 2018)
Not the first time: In 2018, Kardashian (M, pictured March 4) famously persuaded the 74-year-old reality star-turned-politician to grant clemency to Johnson (3-R), who was a first-time drug offender serving life
Trump commuted the sentences of 70 people and granted full pardons to 73 others early Wednesday morning as part of a flurry of clemency action that benefited rappers, ex-members of Congress and other allies of him and his family.
Among the 143 people were 32 who had been convicted of non-violent drug offenses, including distribution of marijuana.
Their commutations comes nearly three years after Kardashian managed to convince Trump to free Tennessee grandmother Alice Marie Johnson.
Final day in office: Trump granted pardons to 143 people last Wednesday including Chris, who was 26 when he received a ‘three-strikes’ mandatory life sentence for federal drug and firearm charges
Young said at a Tennessee airport on Thursday: ‘Fortunately, we have men like Judge Sharp that had the courage and temerity to speak out against our unjust system. And we had women like Kim Kardashian who was willing to use her celebrity to help bring attention towards that’
He concluded: ‘And fortunately, we had President Trump there [who] was willing enough to put a pencil to paper to correct some of the wrongs’
The reality TV star successfully campaigned for the 63-year-old to be pardoned by Trump after spending 21 years in prison for a non-violent drug offense.
Johnson was convicted in 1996 for her involvement in a cocaine trafficking ring.
She was released from prison in 2018 after Trump granted clemency before he issued her a full pardon in August last year.
Trump also supported the First Step Act, which was passed by a majority of the US Senate, after a passionate plea from The Justice Project star.
Kim Kardashian had also advocated for the clemency of death row inmate Brandon Bernard, who was executed in Indiana after last-minute clemency pleas were rejected by the US Supreme Court.
In December, Bernard, 40, received a lethal injection of phenobarbital at the federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana, in a rare execution of a person who was in his teens when the crime occurred.
Kim Kardashian had also advocated for the clemency of death row inmate Brandon Bernard, pictured, who was executed in Indiana after last-minute clemency pleas were rejected by the US Supreme Court
Lighting the match: The twice-impeached president exited office beneath a cloud of coup controversy after inciting his Trump mob’s insurrection of the US Capitol on January 6, which left six people dead
The execution prompted Kardashian to declare that the US Justice System was ‘f****ed up’.
In a Twitter thread, Kardashian wrote: ‘They killed Brandon. He was such a reformed person. So hopeful and positive until the end. More importantly he is sorry, so sorry for the hurt and pain he has caused others.’
The twice-impeached president exited office beneath a cloud of coup controversy after inciting his Trump mob’s insurrection of the US Capitol on January 6, which left six people dead.
Chris – who dreams of coding for SpaceX founder Elon Musk – spent his third night as a free man dining on oysters at seafood spot Henrietta Red in Nashville.
Kim reportedly spends 18 hours a week studying law under the guidance of Jackson, Van Jones, and Erin Haney so she can pass the California State Bar in 2024 and start her own law firm.
‘#lifeafterlife’: Chris – who dreams of coding for SpaceX founder Elon Musk – spent his third night as a free man dining on oysters at seafood spot Henrietta Red in Nashville
Prison selfie: The Justice Project star reportedly spends 18 hours a week studying law under the guidance of Jackson, Van Jones, and Erin Haney so she can pass the California State Bar in 2024 and start her own law firm (pictured in 2019)
Legacy: Kim is following the footsteps of her late father – OJ Simpson (R) defense attorney Robert Kardashian Sr. (M) – who died, age 59, from esophageal cancer in 2003
Kardashian is following the footsteps of her late father – OJ Simpson defense attorney Robert Kardashian Sr. – who died, age 59, from esophageal cancer in 2003 when she was only 22.
She revealed to Vogue back in April 2019 she had been mentoring with practicing attorneys with the hopes of taking the infamously difficult test in 2022.
At the time, She said the legal concepts had been coming easily to her.
On January 8, the newly-separated mother-of-four and her famous family finished filming the 20th (and final) season of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which premieres later this year on E!
On December 10, Kim and her family signed a new multi-year global content deal with Hulu/Star, which starts streaming in late 2021.
End of an era: On January 8, Kardashian and her famous family finished filming the 20th (and final) season of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which premieres later this year on E!
Streaming in late 2021! On December 10, the newly-separated mother-of-four and her fam signed a new multi-year global content deal with Hulu/Star