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Dear friend,

Happy Fourth of July! FAMM is celebrating extra hard this year, because last week we had the great pleasure of meeting Chris Young.

We've been telling Chris' story for a while now, most notably in our film The Vanishing Trial . If you saw it, you might feel like we did — that we already knew this remarkable man. At age 22, Chris was sentenced to life on drug charges. At his sentencing trial, Chris delivered a powerful speech, in which he stressed that he understood "the power of volition. And with my free will and with my choice, I choose to be a positive, productive, successful, law-abiding citizen if given the chance." His words that day were all the more poignant considering that he'd known for some time that he would never again be a free man.

But now, he is a free man! In January, Chris was "given the chance" and granted clemency.

At FAMM, we talk a lot about second chances — how the foundations of our criminal justice system demand that more people should be given a chance to show that they are worthy of compassion and mercy. And when that happens, we celebrate.

At his visit with us last week, Chris said, "There are so many components to the train called FAMM. And I am thankful for every single one of them." He told us how he plans to spend this Independence Day in gratitude, contemplation of his second chance, and thinking of how he can advocate for all those people he left behind.

We can't think of a better way to celebrate. I hope you'll join us in congratulating Chris and enjoying freedom.

Happy Fourth of July,

[[link removed]]

Kevin Ring
President, FAMM
1100 H Street NW | Suite 1000 | Washington, D.C. xxxxxx | Tel: (202) 822-6700
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