Trump Commutes Sentence of Congressman's Son

President Trump has freed an Arkansas congressman's son who was serving time on a federal methamphetamine conviction. According to a Justice Department clemency order dated Jan. 15, Trump has commuted the sentence of James Phillip Womack, son of Republican US Rep. Steve Womack, USA Today reports. James Womack was sentenced in May 2024 to eight years in prison and a $1,900 fine after being convicted of distributing more than five grams of methamphetamine. Court records show he had multiple prior drug-related arrests.

A White House official said the decision factored in James Womack's conduct in prison and serious health problems in the family, including his mother's abdominal cancer diagnosis and a brother with a seizure disorder who struggles to live independently. The commutation does not erase the conviction, and the 2024 sentence's requirement for Womack to serve five years of supervised release has been left intact, KTHV reports.

Rep. Womack, who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, has represented Arkansas' 3rd District since 2011. "I am grateful to President Trump for this gracious and thoughtful action," he said, adding that the commutation let his son return home during a "profoundly difficult time" and that Trump's call to his wife and her medical team "made an impression that I'll cherish forever."