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Obama pardons Bucks woman for 30-year-old drug crime

President Obama granted a presidential pardon Wednesday for a 1980s drug crime to a Bucks County woman who is now chief executive officer of a nonprofit company that operates halfway houses.

Diane Mary DeBarri
Diane Mary DeBarriRead more

President Obama granted a presidential pardon Wednesday for a 1980s drug crime to a Bucks County woman who is now chief executive officer of a nonprofit company that operates halfway houses.

Diane Mary DeBarri of Fairless Hills was pardoned for a 1984 conviction on federal charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine, and distribution of methamphetamine. She was sentenced to 90 days in prison and five years' probation.

DeBarri, formerly known as Diane Mary Wilhelm, is CEO and chairman of the board of the Kintock Group, which is headquartered in King of Prussia and runs facilities in New Jersey and Philadelphia.

She could not be reached for comment.

Margaret Colgate Love, who served as U.S. pardon attorney under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, said a presidential pardon relieves legal restrictions and is a sign of forgiveness.

"It does not expunge the record, but it is a sign of good character," said Love, who now runs a private practice in Washington that specializes in executive clemency.

Obama granted pardons Wednesday to 12 people and commutations of sentences to eight others.

Love said there are 45,000 "collateral consequences" for people with federal criminal convictions. A presidential pardon, for example, helps people seeking jobs or licenses, government grants and contracts, adoptions, or the right to possess firearms, she said.

The Kintock Group's website says that DeBarri started with the company more than 25 years ago as an intake officer and rose through the ranks to lead the nonprofit.

The website says DeBarri earned a bachelor's degree in human service from the former Philadelphia branch of Antioch University.