John Forte - Drug Conviction

Drug Conviction

In 2000, Forté was arrested at Newark International Airport after accepting a briefcase containing $1.4 million worth of liquid cocaine; he was charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to distribute. He was convicted and sentenced to the mandatory minimum 14 years after being found guilty, and incarcerated at FCI Loretto, a low-security federal prison in central Pennsylvania.

Carly Simon and her son Ben Taylor were advocates on Forté's behalf, believing he did not receive a fair trial; they fought for an appeal of the mandatory minimum drug laws that remove a judge’s discretion in a case. They met Forté through Taylor's cousin who was a classmate of Forté's at Phillips Exeter. “Carly is a mentor to me, a guide, absolutely my spiritual godmother,” Forté has said.

With the help of Senator Orrin Hatch, Forté's prison sentence was commuted by President George W. Bush on November 24, 2008. He was released from prison four weeks later, on December 22.