Former Philadelphia labor leader John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty will be released from prison ahead of schedule. President Trump agreed to sign a commutation ending his six-year sentence prematurely, according to his attorney George Bochetto.
Dougherty was convicted in 2023 for the bribery of a city councilmember and embezzling $600,000 from Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. In a prior trial, he was found guilty of bribery and fraud related to utilizing former Councilmember Bobby Henon to push forward projects for IBEW Local 98. Sentenced in July 2024, Dougherty had four years left to serve.
Current records from the Office of the Pardon Attorney do not display the commutation approval. The website shows President Trump previously denied Dougherty’s sentence commutation in July.
“President Trump has signed a commutation so that Johnny Doc can be released from prison to take care of his gravely ill wife, Cecilia Dougherty,” Bochetto stated. “Cecilia Dougherty is in desperate need of care. Her money has run out for private nursing, and she desperately needs John by her side.”
Bochetto hopes Dougherty will be released from the federal penitentiary in Lewisburg on Friday morning.
“We’re going to have a crew there to receive John and bring him to his wife,” Bochetto noted.
Bochetto recounted being informed of the commutation through a White House phone call on Thursday afternoon. Dougherty held the position of head of IBEW Local 98 for three decades, establishing himself as a prominent Democratic figure in Pennsylvania politics.
“We are all just so grateful to President Trump, who really has risen above politics. John Dougherty is an icon of Democratic politics in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania. Donald Trump is a Republican,” Bochetto expressed. “The president has risen above partisan politics and recognized the need and the compassion that this case presented and commuted John’s sentence so he can return home and take care of his wife.”
Prosecutors opposed Dougherty’s release, arguing he had not served enough of his sentence. CBS News Philadelphia has reached out to the White House for confirmation and awaits a response.
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