A judge sentenced a New York man to 5 life terms, but changed his mind 27 years later
New York City – In 1997, Walter Johnson was sentenced to five life convictions for robbery while on King Tut and was known as the infamous New York criminal. But 27 years later, the same judge who locked him up believes the freedom the former prisoner deserves.
“My only expectation is to get out of prison with a toe tag,” Johnson told CBS News.
In 1996, a federal jury found Johnson on seven charges, including robbery, witness tampering and possession, with the aim of distributing cocaine.
Last summer, 90-year-old U.S. District Judge Frederic Block Decide To give Johnson a second chance in a landmark ruling, in which Block acknowledged that he had no experience during his initial sentencing and rarely used the 1990s “Three Strike Act” (required for certain Life imprisonment for the third criminal offence) was stated – Too old and too stiff.
Johnson, 61, was released last October after Block filed hundreds of pages of motion seeking an early release and provided letters of support to one of his robbery victims.
“That was the best day of my life,” Johnson said.
Johnson is still supervised in the court system and will return to jail if he commits another crime.
During his thirty years in prison, he managed the perfect cleaning record and was a model inmate who directed and contributed to the prison program.
“We are not going to let everyone out of prison,” Brock told CBS News. “People like Johnson, the people they have recovered in prison are the ones we give up.”
The Justice Department opposed his release, believing that Johnson’s recovery and remorse were not sufficiently “extraordinary and compelling”.
But the department’s argument failed after Bullock encouraged his colleagues and more states to consider a second chance law.
The block is in “first step” President Trump signed the law reform law released by Johnson in 2018.
Now, Johnson lives a full 180, first using his phone a few months ago. He is already a social media influencer.
“I’m trying to inspire people to understand the importance of freedom, and that’s a miscalculation that throws your life away,” Johnson said.
Black said he thinks Johnson’s story is one of hope and redemption.
“There is no hope, and people have no reason to continue living.”
