diff --git a/llamabot/bot/structuredbot.py b/llamabot/bot/structuredbot.py
index d6dbfd8b7..dd9ae6f7a 100644
--- a/llamabot/bot/structuredbot.py
+++ b/llamabot/bot/structuredbot.py
@@ -118,9 +118,7 @@ def __call__(
                 if attempt == num_attempts - 1:
                     if self.allow_failed_validation and last_codeblock is not None:
                         # If we allow failed validation, return the last attempt
-                        return self.pydantic_model.model_construct(
-                            **json.loads(last_codeblock)
-                        )
+                        return self.pydantic_model.model_construct(**last_codeblock)
                     raise e
 
                 # Otherwise, if we failed, give the LLM the validation error and try again.
diff --git a/llamabot/cli/git.py b/llamabot/cli/git.py
index 45158ed44..634768e54 100644
--- a/llamabot/cli/git.py
+++ b/llamabot/cli/git.py
@@ -130,7 +130,9 @@ class CommitMessage(BaseModel):
         ..., description="Whether or not there is a breaking change in the commit. "
     )
 
-    footer: str = Field("", description="An optional footer.")
+    footer: str = Field(
+        ..., description="An optional footer. Most of the time should be empty."
+    )
     emoji: str = Field(..., description="An emoji that represents the commit content.")
 
     @model_validator(mode="after")