Alveda King Asks Trump to Pardon Nearly 100 Prisoners in 'Tidal Wave' of Mercy
Alveda King, pro-life activist and the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has given President Donald Trump a list of about 100 prisoners she wants him to release as part of a "tidal wave" of mercy.
A longtime supporter of President Trump, King recently delivered the list of names to the White House, expressing optimism at the commander-in-chief giving pardons to the imprisoned individuals.
"I did not, on purpose, count or remember the names, I just submitted the list," said King in an interview with The Washington Examiner published Thursday.
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"I'm trying to get a good tidal wave, a positive tidal wave, a tidal wave to maybe change things and make things better."
King also told the Examiner that she "believes in order" and that she feels "they have a good system in place" for these types of requests.
"I didn't try to go in and put a list in the president's hands. ... You can get it to Jared Kushner's office, and they will look at it," added King.
On August 1, King attended a roundtable event at the White House featuring President Trump and about 20 African-American church leaders.
The meeting included a discussion on a group of topics, including urban workforce development, prison reform and possible public-private partnerships with the faith community.
Other notable attendees included Bishop Harry Jackson of Hope Christian Church in Beltsville, Maryland, Pastor Darrell Scott of New Spirit Revival Center in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, and Pastor Kyle Searcy of the multi-racial Fresh Anointing House of Worship in Montgomery, Alabama.
"I think that is one of the positive major takeaways, that people of color will have access and he feels safe with the faith community because our agenda supersedes politics," stated Bishop Jackson following the meeting.
"I feel like he feels like he can partner with us to get action done, to take positive steps. In the meeting, he listened, we responded."
Thus far, Trump has used his power to issue a pardon nine times in his administration, including in July when he pardoned a father and son, both ranchers from eastern Oregon who were convicted of setting fires on federal lands.
76-year-old Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son, 49-year-old Steven Hammond, had been serving a sentence in a California prison since 2012 when Trump issued his pardon.
A statement from the White House called the new prison terms "unjust" and called to question the evidence used at the trial that gave the Hammonds their most recent conviction.
"The Hammonds are devoted family men, respected contributors to their local community, and have widespread support from their neighbors, local law enforcement, and farmers and ranchers across the West," stated the administration, adding they had already paid $400,000 in settlements, aside from serving as long as four years in prison.
