CONCORD, N.C. _ Sometimes when James Patterson Jr. can't sleep, he sits up in bed as the fear returns. It's a feeling he can't shake: He's afraid he'll go back to prison.
The Concord drug dealer received a nearly 22-year sentence in 2002 for possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine. Under today's laws, Patterson likely would get about three years.
Last summer, President Barack Obama intervened in his case. It was part of a clemency initiative aimed at low-level, non-violent offenders, serving harsh sentences from out-of-date drug laws.
Obama ordered Patterson freed in December after he spent more than 14 years in federal prison. All told, Obama commuted 1,715 sentences, more than any other president.
The 50-year-old Patterson savors his first months on the outside, even as challenges arise. Bills to pay. New responsibilities. Old temptations, of drug deals and easy money.
"Sometimes that thinking really comes back, you know," he said. "And you got the devil on that side. And I gotta say, 'Nah, Lord, You brought me too far. I ain't going that direction.'
"People can change."
