In a bold and unprecedented appointment, the Trump administration has placed a former federal inmate in one of the highest positions within the Bureau of Prisons.
Joshua J. Smith, who once served time for drug trafficking, will now serve as deputy director of the agency responsible for overseeing the nation’s federal prison system.
Smith, a successful businessman and Christian nonprofit founder, was pardoned by President Donald Trump in January 2021.
The announcement of his appointment was made public in a memo Thursday from BOP Director William K. Marshall III and first reported Friday by NBC News.
“Josh brings to this role something our agency has never had before at this level,” Marshall wrote, citing Smith’s “perspective shaped by lived experience, proven innovation and national impact.”
Marshall emphasized Smith’s firsthand understanding of prison conditions, adding that it makes him “uniquely positioned to advocate for the resources and reforms front-line staff need to do their jobs safely and effectively.”
Smith’s story began in 1998 when he was sentenced to five years in federal prison in Kentucky after pleading guilty to trafficking marijuana and cocaine, according to The Knoxville News Sentinel, per The Western Journal.
While behind bars, he found mentorship and faith,