Former Chicago gang leader asks Pritzker for clemency following Trump
pardon
[October 23, 2025]
By KATHLEEN FOODY and TODD RICHMOND
CHICAGO (AP) — One of Chicago's most infamous gang leaders asked Gov. JB
Pritzker for clemency Wednesday after winning a pardon from President
Donald Trump earlier this spring, arguing that he had been “lost in an
enduring pattern of criminality” but he's grown into a different person
in the decades since he's been in prison.
Larry Hoover, once a key leader of the Gangster Disciples, was sentenced
to up to 200 years in Illinois state prison in 1973 in connection with a
murder. He was sentenced decades later to life in federal prison for
running a criminal enterprise behind bars. Hoover has still left his
mark even from prison, launching a jail-inspired fashion line, starting
a political action committee and inspiring rap lyrics.
Trump commuted Hoover's federal sentence in May and he was moved from a
federal “supermax” prison in Colorado to a nearby Colorado state
facility to continue serving his state sentence.
His attorneys sent a request to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board to
hold a hearing on whether Hoover deserves clemency in the state case.
The board makes recommendations to Pritzker, who makes the final
decision on clemency. They argued in the filing that Hoover is now 74
years old, has had three heart attacks doing hard labor at the Colorado
state prison and has no desire to commit any more crimes.
Hoover promises ‘zero chance’ he would re-offend
Hoover wrote in a letter included with the request that he takes
responsibility for his crimes, saying he wasted his talents on
“destructive and self-defeating endeavors” that hurt almost everyone
around him.
“I was lost in an enduring pattern of criminality those many years ago,”
he wrote.
He said he's no longer the person he was when he entered prison after
spending 25 years in “a front row seat to the passing by of the World"
and he has renounced all ties to any criminal organization, including
the Gangster Disciples. He said he suffers from a range of age-related
ailments and just wants to be home with his family and grandchildren.
“There is zero chance I would re-offend,” he wrote. “I know there are
some that will probably remain unconvinced and choose to believe I’m
beyond redemption. I hope to prove them wrong, or at a minimum, to allay
their concerns eventually.”
Request comes as Pritzker, Trump spar over immigration
A spokesperson for Pritzker referred questions Wednesday to the prisoner
review board. The Associated Press left a message with the board's
clemency unit seeking comment.
The second-term Democratic governor has not publicly indicated what he
will do. In May, Pritzker met with members of Hoover’s family in
Springfield where they discussed the clemency process.
“A recommendation is made by the prisoner review board to me that
includes that entire record, and I review the entire record when that
happens,” Pritzker told reporters the day after the meeting.
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This image obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times shows Larry Hoover.
(Chicago Sun-Times via AP, File)
Hoover's request comes as Pritzker's frustrations with Trump mount.
The governor has long been one of Trump's loudest critics and
tensions between them have been growing sharper as the president
escalates a crackdown on Chicago immigrants. Trump's administration
last week asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the deployment of
National Guard troops in the Chicago area.
Hoover founded one of the Windy City's most notorious gangs
Hoover was a founder of the Gangster Disciples more than 50 years
ago. To this day, the Gangster Disciples remain one of Chicago's
most notorious street gangs. Federal prosecutors maintain the gang
generated around $100 million in drug sales annually during the
height of Hoover's leadership.
Hoover was convicted of murder in 1973 after prosecutors accused him
of ordering a gang member killed. He was sentenced to 150 to 200
years in state prison. According to prosecutors, he continued to run
the gang from behind bars for more than 20 years, expanding it to
more than two dozen states. A federal jury in 1997 found him guilty
of dozens of crimes, including engaging in a continuing criminal
enterprise. He got six life sentences.
Fashion, politics and rap
In the 1990s, Hoover launched his “Ghetto Prisoner” fashion line,
telling The Associated Press in 1995 that he hoped the clothing
would help people come together. He also formed a political action
committee that his supporters contend inspired thousands to protest
outside Chicago City Hall.
He still became a central figure in the rap world. Rick Ross' 2010
single “B.M.F.” paid tribute to Hoover's power and influence. Rapper
Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, and Drake, have pushed for
Hoover's release, with West pleading Hoover's case to Trump during
an Oval Office meeting in 2018. Drake and Ye headlined a “Free Larry
Hoover” benefit concert in Los Angeles in 2021.
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Associated Press reporter Sophia Tareen in Chicago contributed to
this report.
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