4 people convicted in Macon will be released early as Joe Biden grants clemency to 1,500
Four offenders with federal cases in Macon will have their sentences expire on Sunday after President Joe Biden granted clemency to nearly 1,500 people last week.
Biden announced Dec. 12 that nearly 1,500 Americans “who have shown successful rehabilitation and a strong commitment to making their communities safer” would receive clemency, according to the White House. Marshall Foskey, Willie Perkins Smith III, Mark Hobby and Ashlee Shaw all had federal convictions in Macon and will now have their prison sentences expire on Sunday. They will start their supervised release period, court documents show.
Foskey was convicted by a jury in 2010 for transporting firearms and was ordered to serve 20 years in prison in addition to prison time he was serving for other offenses, court documents show. He has five years of supervised release.
Smith pleaded guilty to one count of distributing cocaine in 2016 and a federal judge ordered him to serve more than 12 years in prison, as well as a $50,000 fine, according to court documents. He was given three years of supervised release.
Hobby pleaded guilty to possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute in 2017 and was ordered to serve more than 14 years in prison, according to court records. He was given three years of supervised release.
Shaw pleaded guilty to conspiring to possess and distribute methamphetamine in 2018, court records show. She was ordered to serve 10 years in prison. Shaw was given three years of supervised release.
All four were placed on home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic and “successfully reintegrated into their families and communities,” the White House said. They are now at RRM Atlanta, a federal facility that helps with re-entry services at the end of a prison sentence. They will be released from that service on Sunday as part of Biden’s clemency.
“Federal convictions make it difficult to secure housing, jobs, educational opportunities, benefits, and health care; all essential to living a healthy and productive life,” the press release from the White House said. “Through his use of the clemency power, President Biden has taken steps to unlock doors of opportunity that would have otherwise remained closed to these recipients, who deserve a second chance.”
Biden also pardoned 39 people who were convicted of non-violent crimes, including drug offenses, the White House said.
This story was originally published December 20, 2024 at 2:22 PM.
