US rapper Boosie Badazz requests $300k refund over failed Trump pardon

The rapper, whose real name is Torence Hatch, reportedly employed right-wing Washington DC lobbyists to secure a presidential pardon after he was convicted of possessing a loaded weapon at the scene of a music video shooting in 2023.

Later pleading guilty to the charge, Hatch hired JM Burkman & Associates to lobby Donald Trump and secure a pardon, ultimately paying them $600,000 in 2025 for the privilege.

But that pardon never materialised, despite the rapper initially claiming he was told a pardon had been secured on New Year’s Day.

Now, Boosie has taken to social media to call out the firm and appeal to past and present Trump-linked parties, including Laura Loomer, in a bid to prove his case was never presented to the White House.

Calling out the right-wing influencers he claims had promised to get his case before the US President, Boosie's online tirade has been garnering widespread attention, according to the firm’s associates.

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The rapper is now fighting Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman of the group to recoup $300k of that initial payment after the firm failed to secure a presidential pardon.

The firm insists no partial refund was ever promised as part of any agreement - a factor US political outlet Notus called out after reportedly looking at the contract.

According to Notus, the contract states: “If a full presidential pardon for the Matter is not secured for the Client by Close of Business (5:00 PM EST) on January 31, 2025, Consultant shall refund Three Hundred Thousand United States Dollars ($300,000.00) to the Client.”

Notus also quotes the entertainer’s lawyer, who says that all parties understood the deadline to be Jan. 31 of this year - despite the contract naming the wrong year.

Text messages seen by the outlet revealed Wohl had name-dropped MAGA loyalists capable of helping the rapper, including fellow Louisianan, House Speaker Mike Johnson.

“Speaker Johnson’s office categorically denied that there was any merit to the claims made by these individuals or any connection between the speaker and these individuals or the parties involved,” a spokesperson for Mr Johnson said in response.

It's since been revealed that the pair have refused to reimburse the payment, citing overruning costs, with text messages reviewed by NOTUS reportedly revealing conversations in which they claiming the firm was effectively bankrupt.

In response to Boosie's claims, the pair noted they “cannot think of a single client for whom our firm has done more work than Boosie.”

Claiming “no provision to return half the fee was ever actually agreed to", the firm said in a statement that its work “included a massive, highly tailored advocacy campaign across Congress, the executive branch and leading political influencers and media figures."

"We continue to believe that Boosie very much deserves a pardon.”

According to the contracts seen by US political outlet NOTUS, the firm agreed "to provide exclusive strategic advisory and advocacy services for the sole purpose of seeking and securing a full presidential pardon for the charges to which Client has pleaded guilty in the matter of United States v. Torence Hatch, Case No. 3:23-cr-01201-CAB, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.”

Boosie's case comes after Donald Trump authorised a string of notable pardons after coming to power in 2024, with several January 6 insurrectionists walking free - many of whom returned to prison for subsequent offences.