Trump pardons ex-Connecticut Governor Rowland and commutes Chicago gang leader Hoover’s sentence

President Donald Trump has pardoned Connecticut’s former Republican Gov. John Rowland, who was convicted in two federal criminal cases, including one that contributed to his resignation

Trump also commuted the prison sentence for notorious Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover, a White House spokesman told Fox News Digital. 

Rowland was released early from federal custody in 2018 after his 2014 conviction for election fraud and obstruction of justice. That was his second stint in prison after his 2004 federal corruption conviction.

In July 2004, Rowland resigned less than halfway through his third term as governor instead of testifying before a special House Committee inquiry. He pleaded guilty that year to his role in a pay-to-play scheme that included $90,000 in luxury flights on Key Air, an Oxford, Connecticut-based airline, to Las Vegas and Florida.

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Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover, left, had his sentence commuted, while former Connecticut Gov. John Rowland was granted a pardon by President Donald Trump.  (Getty Images)

He served 10 months in federal prison and several months of house arrest in that case.

Trump also commuted the sentence of Larry Hoover.

Hoover, the co-founder of the Chicago gang Gangster Disciples, has been serving a life sentence at a supermax prison in Colorado.

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He was originally imprisoned for a 1973 murder and later convicted in 1998 for operating a criminal enterprise. At the time of his 1998 conviction, Hoover was serving a 200-year sentence for the killing of drug dealer William “Pooky” Young.

President-elect Donald Trump speaks at a news conference at Mar-a-Lago Dec. 16, 2024, in Palm Beach, Fla. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

He later renounced his criminal activities and sought a reduced sentence. It was unclear when Hoover would be released from prison. During a 2018 meeting with Trump, Kanye “Ye” West campaigned for Hoover’s freedom.

“So, it’s very important for me to get Hoover out, because in an alternate universe, I am him,” West said, according to a White House transcript of the meeting. “And I have to go and get him free because he was doing positive inside of Chicago, just like how I’m moving back to Chicago, and it’s not just about, you know, getting on stage and being an entertainer and having a monolithic voice that’s forced to be a specific party.”

Trump also pardoned rapper Kentrell Gaulden, the Louisiana-based artist known as NBA YoungBoy who was convicted of possessing weapons as a felon and released from prison earlier this year. 

NBA YoungBoy performs during Lil WeezyAna at Champions Square Aug. 25, 2018, in New Orleans. (Erika Goldring/Getty Images)

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Also pardoned were former U.S. Rep. Michael Grimm, R-N.Y.; Kevin Eric Baisden; Mark C. Bashaw; former reality television personalities Todd and Julie Chrisley; and Tanner Mansell and John Moore, who were both convicted of stealing fish gear in federal waters. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.