Six Dallas-Fort Worth residents were among the 75 people serving sentences for nonviolent drug offenses whose federal prison terms were commuted on Tuesday by President Joe Biden.
Biden also pardoned three people — including a Houston woman — marking the first pardons he has given out during his term as president.
The White House announced the clemencies Tuesday as it launched a series of job training and reentry programs for those in prison or recently released.
Many of those who received commutations have been serving their sentences on home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several were serving lengthy sentences and would have received less time had they been convicted today for the same offenses as a result of the 2018 bipartisan sentencing reform ushered into law by the Trump administration.
According to the White House, the local residents who had their sentences commuted include:
- Sharon Louise Boatright, of Fort Worth, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine in 2013. She was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison, along with four years of supervised release. Her prison sentence was commuted to expire on April 26, 2024, with the rest of her time being served on home confinement and leaving intact the four-year supervised release.
- Lori Jean Cross, of North Richland Hills, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison with three years of supervised release in 2016. Her sentence was commuted to expire on April 26, 2023, with the remainder to be served on home confinement and leaving intact the three-year supervised release.
- Deborah Ann Dodd, of Forney, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. She was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison with five years of supervised release in 2015. Her sentence was commuted to expire on April 26, 2023, with the remainder to be served on home confinement and leaving intact the five-year supervised release.
- Nova Neal Finau, of Fort Worth, who was convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. She was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison with four years of supervised release in 2016. Her sentence was commuted to expire on April 26, 2023, with the remainder to be served on home confinement leaving intact the four-year supervised release.
- Stephanie Hernandez, of Dallas, who was convicted of distribution of a controlled substance. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison with three years of supervised release in 2017. Her sentence was commuted to expire on April 26, 2023, with the remainder to be served on home confinement and leaving intact the three-year supervised release.
- Brittany Krambeck, of Fort Worth, who was convicted of maintaining a drug involved premises and structuring transactions to evade reporting requirements in 2010. She was sentenced to more than 18 years in prison with three years of supervised release. Her sentence was commuted to expire April 26, 2024, with the remainder to be served on home confinement an leaving intact the three-year supervised release.
No relatives of the local commutation recipients immediately returned requests for comment Tuesday.
In a statement announcing the clemencies, Biden said America is a “nation of laws and second chances, redemption, and rehabilitation.”
“Elected officials on both sides of the aisle, faith leaders, civil rights advocates, and law enforcement leaders agree that our criminal justice system can and should reflect these core values that enable safer and stronger communities,” Biden said.
Civil rights and criminal justice reform groups have pushed the White House to commute sentences and work harder to reduce disparities in the criminal justice system. Biden’s grants of clemency also come as the administration has faced congressional scrutiny over misconduct and the treatment of inmates in the beleaguered federal Bureau of Prisons, which is responsible for inmates serving sentences of home confinement.
Biden, as head of the Senate Judiciary Committee, helped shepherd through the 1994 crime bill that many criminal justice experts say contributed to harsh sentences and mass incarceration of Black people.
