President Donald Trump commuted the federal sentence of Larry Hoover, a Chicago gang leader who has been serving multiple life sentences for charges including murder, extortion and money laundering.
It’s one of several actions announced by Trump announced Thursday, May 28 that also includes the pardon a former U.S. Army officer who was found guilty by a special court martial during the Biden administration for refusing to follow COVID-19 safety measures, a pair of reality television personalities and former U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, a New York Republican who resigned after being convicted of tax fraud.
Hoover led the Gangster Disciples and was convicted in a 1973 murder in Illinois, court documents say. While serving up to 200 years for the crime, he was convicted of several federal crimes associated with continuing to run the gang from prison, tacking on a life sentence in 1997.
Trump’s action wipes out his federal charges, but the original state charges remain in effect, keeping the 74-year-old behind bars.
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The former gang leader attracted celebrity support over the last several years. Chicago-born rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, and Drake hosted a “Free Larry Hoover Benefit Concert” at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum December 2021. Ye posted to X May 28 thanking the president for commuting the sentence. Hoover’s son, Larry Hoover Jr., who has publicly advocated for his father’s release and for prison reform and sentencing fairness, thanked Ye after the commutation was announced.
Beginning in the early 1970s, the Gangster Disciples sold cocaine, heroin and other drugs in Chicago. At its height, the criminal enterprise had approximately 6,000 members and raked in $100 million annually, according to court documents. Hoover, also known as “King Hoover,” led the gang internally referred to as “the Family,” court filings say.
Hoover, alongside fellow gang member Andrew Howard, was convicted of murdering 19-year-old drug dealer William “Pooky” Young in 1973 and was sentenced to a term of 150 to 200 years imprisonment. While serving the sentence, the government in 1993 obtained recordings of the convicted gang leader by hiding transmitters in badges worn by Hoover’s visitors, leading to federal charges associated with Hoover continuing to lead the Gangster Disciples from behind bars.
Hoover has spent nearly three decades serving the sentence at a maximum security prison in Colorado.
This story has been updated to fix an inaccuracy.
Contributing: Zac Anderson, USA TODAY.
Kathryn Palmer is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at[email protected] and on X @KathrynPlmr.
