Patty Hearst Trial: 1976 - Hearst Has Groundswell Of Support

A "Committee For the Release of Patricia Hearst" sent thousands of letters to President Jimmy Carter urging him to commute her sentence. U.S. Representative Leo Ryan of California circulated a petition on her behalf in Congress. It was signed by 48 members, who agreed that "never before in the history of our country has such a bizarre set of circumstances led to such a tragic result: a victim of a violent kidnapping participated in a bank robbery under the direction and motivation of her abductors."

In November 1978, all motions to reduce Hearst's sentence or to set aside the verdict on grounds of insufficiency of counsel were denied. Hearst remained in prison, maintaining her innocence and refusing to discuss parole because of its imputation of guilt.

President Jimmy Carter conditionally commuted Hearst's sentence on February 1, 1979. The White House declared that it was the consensus of all of those most familiar with this case that but for the extraordinary criminal and degrading experiences that the petitioner suffered as a victim of the SLA, she would not have become a participant in the criminal acts for which she stands convicted and sentenced and would not have suffered the punishment and other consequences she has endured.