Alice Johnson smiled from ear to ear on Thursday as she spoke out for the first time since being freed from federal prison on Wednesday.
The 63-year-old grandmother had her life sentence commuted by President Trump, after Kim Kardashian West went to him with her story and asked for a pardon.
Sitting next to her daughter, who she has been separated from for the last 22 years, Johnson said she’s excited that she has another shot at life.
‘We are going to appreciate every single moment that we have. Sometimes, we take family and life for granted. I’ll never do that again,’ Johnson told the Today show.
Alice Johnson spoke with Good Morning America and the Today show on Thursday, a day after being released from prison
The 63-year-old grandmother sat next to her 45-year-old daughter, who she has been separated from for the past 22 years
President Trump wished Johnson a ‘wonderful life’ in a tweet Thursday morning
When asked what it felt like to reunite with her family yesterday, Johnson told GMA it was ‘the most exhilarating feeling ever’.
‘It was, for a moment, shock. Just to see my family there. I knew that I walked out of the door, that was the first shock, to see them. My heart was leaping,’ she added to the Today show.
Johnson was arrested along with 15 others in 1993 on charges including conspiracy to possess cocaine, attempted possession of cocaine and money laundering.
But ten of her alleged co-conspirators turned against her in exchange for reduced sentencing or dropped charges.
Johnson was jailed for life in 1996 for being part of a cocaine ring despite it being a first-time offence and violence not being an issue in the case
The joy on her face was clear to see as she jubilantly ran toward her adoring relatives after being released from prison on Wednesday
Johnson said she believes after more than two decades behind bars she’s ‘overpaid’ her debt to society.
‘But I’m just so thankful. I’m not bitter about it. I’m just happy that it has come to an end,’ she said.
Johnson was also asked how it felt to have Kim Kardashian West personally appeal to the president on her behalf. Johnson said it’s proof God intervened on her behalf.
‘I know that it was a miracle. I know that only God could have touched Kim Kardashian’s heart like that.
Kim Kardashian West met with Trump late last month to petition the president to release Johnson
Kim and Johnson have already spoken by phone after Kardashian called her in jail to break the news of the President’s pardon
‘We have connected. She said that she felt something when she saw and heard my story. I’m just so thankful for it. I can’t explain it. It’s a miracle,’ Johnson said.
Since she hasn’t heard from the White House since her release, Johnson took the opportunity to issue her thanks to President Trump.
‘I’d like to tell President Trump that I am so grateful for everything that you’ve done for me and my family. This moment right now is happening because President Trump had mercy on me,’ she said.
Johnson went on to say that she hopes Trump will help other non-violent first-time drug offender sbehind bars.
‘Please, please remember us, the others who have been left behind because there are so many… like me who need to have the opportunity that I’ve had,’ she said.
Johnson says she hopes her story will inspire further prison reform.
‘I want to take this chance to try to magnify what has happened with me so that people will remember that there are other people just like me who are first time, non-violent offenders, who pose no safety risks to their communities. I can’t just walk away and forget about those who have been left behind,’ she said.