On a recent Wednesday, former Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover was granted commutation for his federal sentence by President Donald Trump. Currently housed in a Colorado-based supermax prison, Hoover has been largely held in solitary confinement as stated by his attorney. Despite the commutation, Hoover’s journey towards freedom is far from complete, he remains under state custody.
Supporters and legal representatives of Hoover are now advocating for his release from the state sentence. They are placing their hope on Governor JB Pritzker of Illinois mirroring President Trump’s actions, given their belief that Hoover, who was once a notorious gang figure, has reformed. Hoover, now in his mid-seventies, established the Gangster Disciples in the 1960s, in a joint effort with David Barksdale, integrating two separate street gangs.
Hoover’s initial conviction back in 1973 was for murder, after he was found guilty of ordering a hit against William ‘Pooky’ Young. Young, assumed by Hoover to have been siphoning money from him, was shot six times in the head and his body abandoned in an alley. Following this conviction, Hoover was slapped with a sentence ranging from 150 to 200 years in state custody for his participation in the crime.
Hoover’s federal offense came to light in the early part of the 1990s when it was discovered that he was still directing the operations of the gang from his prison cell. The Gangster Disciples allegedly raked in a whopping $100 million annually through drug trafficking, all under the umbrella of Hoover’s management during the peak of their power, as reported by the Chicago Sun-Times.
In its pursuit to unravel Hoover’s clandestine activities, law enforcement was able to listen in on his conversations with other gang members visiting him in prison by equipping the visitor badges with recording devices. They took this approach due to Hoover’s careful strategy of not discussing any illicit dealings over the phone. Finally, in 1997, a jury found him guilty of several crimes pertaining to his ongoing association with the gang.
Hoover was subsequently handed another life sentence, leading to his transfer to the high-security ADX Florence. This facility, known for its stringent security measures, accommodates some of the country’s most notorious or dangerous criminals. Recently, in 2022, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, Hoover renounced the Gangster Disciples.
Lately, Hoover has sought release under the First Step Act, a prison reform law signed by President Trump during his first term. The First Step Act was designed to address excessively harsh sentencing practices and to broaden the potential for compassionate release, among a host of other reforms.
The exact circumstances leading to President Trump’s decision to commute Hoover’s federal sentence remain unclear. It is known, however, that during a meeting with President Trump in his first term in 2018, West had advocated on Hoover’s behalf.
In an unprecedented move this year, President Trump nominated Alice Marie Johnson, a former federal prisoner turned criminal justice reform advocate, as his ‘pardon czar’. This novel position was designed to provide advice to the President on matters of clemency. Alice Marie Johnson was a beneficiary of such clemency when her own life sentence, given in 1996 on a narcotic trafficking conviction, was commuted by President Trump in his inaugural term in 2018.
If Hoover is to live the remaining years of his life outside of confinement, he would need to make an appeal to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board or obtain clemency from Gov. Pritzker. The debate over Hoover’s potential release and reform highlights the ongoing issues with long-term sentencing and the possibility of rehabilitation in the criminal justice system.