Jason Hernandez

Jason Hernandez is an advocate for clemency process reform and serves on the board of the Buried Alive Project, which works to eliminate life-without-parole sentences handed down under federal drug law. Hernandez is known as one of “Obama’s Eight”—the first wave of low-level, nonviolent drug offenders to be granted clemency by President Barack Obama. While in prison, Hernandez became a respected “jailhouse attorney” and was paid to work on other prisoners’ cases, many of which involved parental rights, child support, and divorce. Hernandez contributed an Op-Ed piece to The New York Times titled “The Power of Clemency” (Jan 2018). Also in 2018, Hernandez received a Latino Justice Media Fellowship and a Soros Justice Fellowship. He is developing a curriculum and toolkit to support clemency campaigns, working with the legal clinic at the Texas A&M University School of Law and New York University.