Graduation Puts `Kemba's Nightmare' Further in the Past. (Noteworthy News)

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RICHMOND, VA.

Kemba Smith, who spent six years in prison before being freed by President Bill Clinton in December 2000, received her bachelor's degree from Virginia Union University last month.

Smith, whose ordeal made her a national symbol for critics of mandatory sentences for first-time drug offenders, has set her sights on becoming a lawyer.

"It just seems right for me to pursue law, to have that title to go along with my advocacy," says Smith, 30.

Smith was a student at Hampton University when she became caught up in a drug ring run by her boyfriend. She was sentenced to 24 1/2 years in prison in 1994.

She earned some college …