Carol Denise Richardson, 49, was ordered to return to federal prison for 14 months during a hearing on Thursday, after prosecutors said she repeatedly violated the conditions of her supervised release — including an arrest for stealing laundry detergent, which she planned to sell to buy drugs, the Houston Chronicle reports.
“This defendant was literally given a second chance to become a productive member of society and has wasted it,” Assistant US Attorney Ted Imperato said in a statement. “She has clearly shown a willful disregard for the law and must face the consequences for her crimes and actions.”
Richardson — who was convicted in June 2006 of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of crack cocaine and two counts of possession with intent to distribute – was sentenced to life in prison. She was released on July 28, 2016, as one of a total of 1,715 inmates, mostly those with nonviolent drug convictions, who were granted clemency by Obama during his two terms in the White House, according to the Chronicle.
Richardson had been ordered to remain under supervision for 10 years, but was arrested for theft in Pasadena on April 13. She didn’t report the arrest and also didn’t tell authorities she was fired from a job or had changed her address — all violations of the terms of her release, Imperato told Judge Keith P. Ellison.
Ellison, meanwhile, said he was disappointed that Richardson blew her chance at freedom. He also sentenced her to five years of supervised release in addition to her time in federal prison.
Richardson cried throughout Thursday’s hearing, according to attorney Mark Anthony Diaz, who was assigned to her case. He said the theft involved $60 worth of stolen laundry detergent she planned to sell to buy drugs.
Richardson’s addiction to crack cocaine led her back to prison, according to Diaz, who asked the judge to provide her mandatory drug rehabilitation. Ellison said the Bureau of Prisons does not provide such treatment to someone given a life sentence, but said he would make rehabilitation part of her post-release plan.
Amy Povah, founder of CAN-DO, a nonprofit group that seeks clemency for nonviolent drug offenders, told the Washington Post that Richardson’s case was “extremely rare,” adding that she knew of only one other person who had been returned to prison after being granted clemency by Obama.
“We are very concerned to hear that Carol Richardson has been sent back to prison for various probation violations that appear to stem from her drug addiction that has gone untreated,” a statement from the group read. “The system has failed Carol, yet again. It will be easy for some to point a finger at Carol and justify their support of harsh mandatory sentences as a necessity to keep people locked up, when we feel Carol’s current situation is proof that we desperately need to overhaul our current drug policy that treats addiction as a criminal issue, rather than a medical issue.”
Source: Nypost
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