Owen Hanson, a former University of Southern California (USC) football player known as the "Cocaine Quarterback" for his role as a logistics coordinator for a Mexican drug cartel, has credited President Donald Trump's First Step Act for giving him a second chance. Hanson told Fox News' Lara Trump on the July 11 edition of "My View" that the law allowed him to earn years off his federal prison sentence.

Hanson recounted how he found himself deeply in debt to a cartel that forced him to work for them under threat of death, costing him 10 years in prison. Before the First Step Act, Hanson said federal inmates typically expected to serve at least 85% of their sentences with little opportunity for early release.

He recalled a pivotal moment when a prison counselor informed him, "Owen, you've earned three years off your sentence for going back to school and getting your degree. You also earned another two years of halfway house." Hanson said this gave him hope during his incarceration.

Reflecting on his experience, Hanson said, "It's a very humbling experience, and in the beginning when the judge sentenced you to nearly two decades in prison, and they tell you it's time to rehabilitate, you kind of wonder, and you look at yourself in the mirror while you're in your prison cell and maybe the judge is doing me a favor."

He also shared that prison ultimately saved his life, allowing him to get sober, earn a master's degree, and now help others.

The First Step Act, signed into law by President Trump, aims to reform federal prison and sentencing laws to promote rehabilitation and reduce recidivism.

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