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Father of former Kansas forward Jamari Traylor receives clemency

Big 12 Basketball Tournament - Semifinals

KANSAS CITY, MO - MARCH 11: Jamari Traylor #31 of the Kansas Jayhawks shoots a free throw against the Baylor Bears the Baylor Bears during the semifinals of the Big 12 Basketball Tournament at Sprint Center on March 11, 2016 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)

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The father of former Kansas forward Jamari Traylor has had a life sentence commuted by soon-to-be ex-President Barack Obama.

The story of Jessie Traylor has been told many times over. In 2008, he was arrested when he was caught with a kilo of cocaine in a backpack. He was working as a drug courier, taking the coke from Chicago to Decatur, Illinois, but since this was his third drug-related offense - he had already been arrested on two non-violent drug offenses - Jessie was sentenced to life in prison.

As the Kansas City Star detailed last week, Jessie had exhausted all of his appeals, but he reached out to the President from clemency. It took awhile for Obama to get to Traylor’s case, but eventually he had his life sentence reduced to 20 years. With time off for good behavior, Jessie could be out as soon as 2024.