NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – At least four Tennessee men are among the 73 people pardoned by President Donald Trump during the final hours of his term, and three of them have dedicated their lives to helping other inmates and those at risk of incarceration.
Robert Sherrill is a Nashville resident who served five years in prison on drug charges. After his release he started a successful janitorial business but has also devoted his time to helping others. His projects include Impact Youth Outreach, a mentoring program for at-risk youth, and the Dream Initiative, which works to ease prisoners’ reentry into society.
Sherrill said he knows first-hand about the roadblocks ex-prisoners face. Even after he received a pardon from former Gov. Bill Haslam for his state conviction, the federal conviction remained in place and made it very difficult to get federal contracts or apply for federal loans.
“The negative stigma takes its toll,” he said. “I just want to be successful and provide for my family.”
Sherrill learned of the pardon shortly after midnight. “I just went crazy,” he said Wednesday. “I haven’t been asleep since.”