Drug-trafficking mom of Broncos star - jailed since he was just 11 years old - is among 46 convicts freed by Obama in biggest clemency grant for decades

• President Barack Obama cut the prison sentences of 46 non-violent drug offenders on Monday
• Among them was Katrina Smith, the mother of Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas 
• Obama also wrote individual letters to each of the individuals. Their sentences all now expire on November 10, 2015 

By Associated Press

Published: 13:06 EST, 13 July 2015 | Updated: 07:16 EST, 14 July 2015

Calling America 'a nation of second chances,' President Barack Obama cut the prison sentences of 46 non-violent drug offenders on Monday, including the drug-trafficking mother of Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas.

It was what the White House hopes will be just one prong of a broader push to make the criminal justice system fairer while saving the government money

Fourteen of those whose sentences were commuted had been sentenced to life in prison and the vast majority to at least 20 years, the president said in a video released by the White House, adding that 'their punishments didn't fit the crime.' 

Commuted: Calling America 'a nation of second chances,' President Barack Obama cut the prison sentences of 46 non-violent drug offenders on Monday, including the drug-trafficking mother of Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas

Thomas's mother, Katrina Smith, was arrested on narcotics trafficking charges in 1999 along with her mother Minnie Thomas.

Smith was scheduled to be released in 2017, according to USA Today. Thomas was given a life sentence. 

They've been behind bars since Thomas was 11-years-old. She will now be released in November.

'God is good.. Great news today, My Best lady come home November 10.. Godbless,' Thomas wrote on Facebook on Monday. 

Obama said 'These men and women were not hardened criminals.' He also promised to lay out more ideas on criminal justice changes during a speech to the NAACP on Tuesday in Philadelphia.

Since Congress enacted mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes in the 1980s, the federal prison population has grown from 24,000 to more than 214,000, according to Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a group seeking sentencing changes.

And the costs, said Obama, are over $80 billion a year to incarcerate people who often 'have only been engaged in nonviolent drug offenses.'

While Obama has spoken off and on during his presidency about the need for smarter sentencing and other justice reforms, prospects for significant structural change have improved recently with growing interest among Republicans in Congress.

'Congress simply can't act fast enough,' said Julie Stewart, president and founder of Families Against Mandatory Minimums. She said that while Obama's executive actions have picked off some of the most egregious sentencing inequities, significant legislative action is needed to stop the flow of people 'going to prison year in and year out, serving too much time.' 

Obama commutes sentences of 46 nonviolent drug offenders

U.S. President Barack Obama explains why he is commuting the sentences of 46 nonviolent drug offenders

Obama wrote letters to all 46 offenders, including Jerry Bailey, who was convicted of conspiracy to violate narcotics laws

Republican support in any such effort is critical, Stewart said, likening it to a Nixon-goes-to-China moment. 'Nobody's going to question a Republican's credibility on being tough on crime,' she said.

Yet not all Republicans saw the commutations as a step in the right direction. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, who sits on the House Judiciary Committee, accused the president of engaging in showmanship, publicity stunts and political pandering.

While Obama has spoken off and on during his presidency about the need for smarter sentencing and other justice reforms, prospects for significant structural change have improved recently with growing interest among Republicans in Congress.

Cedric Culpepper of Orlando, Florida was convicted of possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of cocaine

'Congress simply can't act fast enough,' said Julie Stewart, president and founder of Families Against Mandatory Minimums. She said that while Obama's executive actions have picked off some of the most egregious sentencing inequities, significant legislative action is needed to stop the flow of people 'going to prison year in and year out, serving too much time.'

Republican support in any such effort is critical, Stewart said, likening it to a Nixon-goes-to-China moment. 'Nobody's going to question a Republican's credibility on being tough on crime,' she said.

Yet not all Republicans saw the commutations as a step in the right direction. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin, who sits on the House Judiciary Committee, accused the president of engaging in showmanship, publicity stunts and political pandering.

'Commuting the sentences of a few drug offenders is a move designed to spur headlines, not meaningful reform,' Sensenbrenner said.

Obama has issued 89 commutations during his presidency, most of them to non-violent offenders sentenced for drug crimes under now-outdated sentencing guidelines. A commutation leaves the conviction in place, but reduces the punishment. The sentences of those who received commutations on Monday will expire on Nov. 10, 2015.

Obama wrote a personal letter to each of those whose sentence was commuted.

In a letter to Jerry Bailey, sentenced to 30 years for conspiracy to violate laws against crack-cocaine, Obama praised Bailey for showing the potential to turn his life around.

'Now it is up to you to make the most of this opportunity,' Obama wrote.

Marlon McNealy: Charged with two counts conspiracy to commit racketeering, conspiracy to distribute cocaine, and knowingly and intentionally distributing 50 grams or more of cocaine base

Obama announced the commutations in a video produced and posted online by the White House, preventing journalists from being able to question him about the move. The White House and political candidates frequently use the same technique, with some presidential hopefuls even announcing their candidacy via scripted videos.

The 46 sentence reductions are the most presidential commutations in a single day since at least the administration of President Lyndon Johnson, according to the White House. Overall, Obama has commuted sentences of 89 people, surpassing the combined number of commutations granted by Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.

They represent a sliver of all those seeking clemency: Justice Department statistics show that roughly 2,100 commutation petitions have been received so far this fiscal year, and about 7,900 are pending.

White House counsel Neil Eggleston predicted the president would issue even more commutations before leaving office, but added that 'clemency alone will not fix decades of overly punitive sentencing policies.'

The president this week is devoting considerable attention to criminal justice. In addition to his speech Tuesday in Philadelphia, he is to become the first sitting president to visit a federal prison when he goes to the El Reno Federal Correctional Institution outside of Oklahoma City on Thursday. He'll meet with both law enforcement officials and inmates.

In recent years, long drug sentences have come under increasing scrutiny and downward trends already are taking shape.

The Supreme Court has made sentencing guideline ranges advisory rather than mandatory. Obama signed the Fair Sentencing Act in 2010 to cut penalties for crack cocaine offenses. And last year, the independent Sentencing Commission, which sets sentencing policy, reduced guideline ranges for drug crimes and applied those retroactively.

Bryant Keith Shelton was put away for distribution of cocaine base in 2003

Advocates for fair sentences expressed hope the president's actions would have a ripple effect in the states.

'I hope this sends a message to governors of states that have the power to grant clemencies to those who deserve a chance to be reunited with their families,' said Anthony Papa of the Drug Policy Alliance. Papa was granted clemency in New York in 1997 after serving 12 years under state drug laws. 

Obama this week is devoting considerable attention to the criminal justice system. He plans to lay out ideas for how to improve the fairness of the system during a speech to the NAACP in Philadelphia on Tuesday. 

And on Thursday, he is to become the first sitting president to visit a federal prison when he goes to the El Reno Federal Correctional Institution outside of Oklahoma City. While there, he will meet with law enforcement officials and inmates.

Obama said that after his commutations, there is still 'a lot more we can do to restore the sense of fairness at the heart of our justice system.'

Julie Stewart, president and founder of Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a group seeking changes in sentencing, said the organization was 'thrilled to see that more folks serving excessively long sentences for non-violent drug offenses are going home.'

'But they're leaving behind many equally deserving people,' she said, 'so let's keep these commutations coming, while remembering that clemency is a tool made necessary by our failure to reform mandatory minimum sentencing laws. Congress simply can't act fast enough.'

The 46 sentence reductions announced Monday are the most presidential commutations in a single day since the Lyndon Johnson administration in the 1960s. 

Obama has commuted the sentences of 89 people, surpassing the combined number of commutations granted by Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush.

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