On Robert’s Clemency application (7/2013) he was asked to state in his "own" words why he seeks a commutation of sentence. Speaking from his heart he answered… “I seek commutation of my sentence because I recognize the severity of my crime, I fully accept responsibility for my actions, and I know that my decision to deal drugs was the very worst decision I have ever made. I am not an evil person, but a person who made the wrong choices when I should have been strong enough to resist the temptation that lived right outside the front door of my home and in between every block of my neighborhood. I have used this time of incarceration and self-reflection to become a better person than I was before my imprisonment. I have utilized just about every program of rehabilitation that prison has offered me and instilled those concepts of positive change into the fiber of my being. I now know that there are no short cuts. Success comes from hard work, education, and commitment to family, my community, and society in general. Throughout my incarceration, I have been constantly reminded that the graves mistakes I made were not worth any of the harm that I have done to my family. I have spent all of my twenty year old daughter's life in prison, and I have met only one of my three grandchildren. She was forced to grow up without a father, and now her children are forced to grow up without a grandfather because of my selfish mistakes. After my father's sudden passing last year, I was unable to comfort my family, attend his funeral, or speak with him before he died, all of which I will always deeply regret. My daughter, my grandchildren, and my aging mother need me, and I need them. I seek commutation of my sentence because I have to believe that my life is worth saving and that I am not just some throw-away that is irredeemable. I do not want to die in here of old age or at the hands of someone with a rusty shank with no hope for a better way of life, only to be carried away in a stranger's coffin, in a stranger's hearse, to be buried in a stranger's graveyard surrounded by countless other strangers. I want to be buried by my family, surrounded by the people who love me most in this world. If there truly are second chances, then I believe I have earned a second chance at life. I should not be sentenced to die for selling drugs over a five month period at the age of twenty without a second chance. If I am left to die in prison for my crime, then what hope will there be for anyone else who seeks a second chance in a country known for its second chances? I seek commutation of my sentence in order to finally walk out of these prison doors. I am fully prepared to make a contribution to this beautiful society and share my story of hope, mercy, and redemption.” I have started a petition on whitehouse.gov for Robert, as well. We have to have 100,000 signatures in 30 days (Nov. 8, 2014) in order to get a response from the White House. We currently only have a little over 4,700 signatures. Please help us obtain 100,000 signatures by Nov. 8 by signing and sharing the petition with others. The link to the petition is as follows: http://wh.gov/i3nk0 Thank you, Veda A. (Robert’s Sister)