My name is John Duffey.  In 2010 I plead guilty to an EPA charge of Conspiring to Dispose of Hazardous Waste without a License.  Now, before you assume I was dumping used needles on a beach or radioactive waste, I was guilty of disposing of MOTHBALLS.  The active ingredient is a chemical known as Naphthalene and it is listed by the EPA as a suspected hazard and not an actual or known hazard.  I plead guilty to the charge because I was the executive who authorized the throwing away of a pallet of mothballs.  

I was sentenced to a total of five years.  12 months and 1 day to confinement, 6 months home confinement, $40,000.00 fine, and three years of supervised release.  Because of good behavior, I served 9 months in confinement and was released early, served six months on home confinement, and was released early from supervised release after serving 1.5 years.  I paid the fine in full just before reporting in to serve confinement in Cumberland, MD.  

I was released from confinement in 2011 and have been doing my best to ensure compliance and good citizenship ever since.  Before my conviction the only crime I had been convicted of was a speeding ticket.  Since my release I haven't even gotten a speeding ticket.  

Since my release, I have published two books on psychology and spirituality, earned a BA in Psychology from Auburn University, earned a MA in clinical mental health counseling, and am almost done with a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision.  I am in private practice as a Licensed Professional Counselor in Alabama and am working on a third book about overcoming PTSD for veterans.  I received a pardon from the State of Alabama in 2015.  All rights have been returned to me except my right to bear arms (2nd Amendment) because states are not permitted the right to restore those in federal offenses.  

I have spent the past four years treating veterans and veteran families (along with first responders) affected by PTSD Pro Bono (for free) while the VA mental health system was backed-up and non-responsive to their needs.  Additionally, I have conducted research on PTSD and methods of treatment for it that has resulted in numerous peer-reviewed journal published papers.  

It has been thirteen (13) years since my conviction and I have held myself to the highest standards of citizenship and professional ethics while giving back to society at-large.  I have applied for a Presidential Pardon through the U.S. Pardon Attorney's Office in hopes that he will review my petition and conduct since release and grant me clemency.  I am asking my fellow citizens to sign a petition that encourages the President to issue a clemency.