Susan Smith denied parole 30 years after she drowned her two sons by driving them into a South Carolina lake

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The parole board ruled Wednesday: susan smith He should spend 30 years in prison after killing his sons by rolling his car into a South Carolina lake while they were strapped in their car seats.

This was the first parole hearing for Smith, 53, who is serving a life sentence after a jury convicted him of murder but decided not to impose the death penalty. Under state law at the time, he is now eligible for a parole hearing every two years because he has spent 30 years behind bars.

Smith was able to communicate her case to the parole board via video link from the women’s prison. She later went offline, and her ex-husband and the father of the children she killed, along with the prosecutor at her 1995 trial, asked for her to remain in prison.

Prosecutors said Smith killed 3-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alex because a man she was in a relationship with suggested the boys were the reason they didn’t have a future together.

In South Carolina, parole is granted in only 8% of cases, and less so the first time an inmate appears before the board, in notorious cases or in cases opposed by prosecutors and victims’ families.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) – Susan Smith will be up for parole Wednesday, nearly 30 years after she was convicted of rolling her car into a South Carolina lake and drowning her two sons who were strapped into their car seats.

Smith, 53, is serving a life sentence after the jury in his 1995 murder trial decided not to give him the death penalty. According to the law at the time, he had the right to request release after serving 30 years in prison.

Smith’s hearing is scheduled for November 20. Parole hearings are held virtually in South Carolina, with the inmate participating via video call from prison.

In South Carolina, parole is granted in only 8% of cases, and is less likely on a prisoner’s first appearance before the board in notorious cases or in cases opposed by prosecutors and victims’ families. Smith falls into all of these categories.

“The jury believed he received a life sentence and believed he should serve that sentence,” said Tommy Pope, the lead prosecutor in Smith’s case and now the Republican Speaker Pro Tem of the South Carolina House.
“Secondly, I will point to his behavior in prison to show what unfortunately a juror would hope would happen, that he would be remorseful and think about those children. It proved that he was only thinking of Susan Smith,” Pope said.

Smith made international headlines in October 1994 when she said she had been carjacked late at night near the town of Union and that a man had driven away with her sons. Smith, who is white, said the car thief was black.

For nine days, Smith made numerous, sometimes tearful, pleas for the safe return of 3-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alex.

But the entire time, the children and Smith’s car were at the bottom of nearby John D. Long Lake, authorities said.

Investigators said Smith’s story didn’t make sense. Car thieves often just want a vehicle, so investigators asked why they let Smith out but not her children. The traffic light where Smith said he stopped when his car was pulled over would only turn red if another car was waiting to cross the street and Smith said there were no other cars around. And other bits and pieces of the story didn’t make sense.

Smith admitted to letting his car roll off a boat ramp and into the lake. An image reconstructed by researchers showed that it took six minutes for the Mazda to sink below the surface of the water, while cameras inside the vehicle showed water flowing into the vents and rising steadily. The boys’ bodies were found hanging upside down in their car seats, their tiny hands pressed against the glass.

Prosecutors said Smith was having an affair with the wealthy son of the owner of the business where she worked. He broke off the relationship because he had two young sons, and Smith decided that was how he would solve the problem.

Prosecutors sought the death penalty, and the young mother’s trial became a national sensation and a true crime touchstone despite not being televised by a judge who was also concerned about what cameras were doing to the ongoing OJ Simpson murder trial. . The jury convicted Smith but decided he did not deserve the death penalty.

Smith’s lawyers said Smith was remorseful, had a mental breakdown and planned to die with her children, but got out of the car at the last moment.

Smith’s 30-year prison life was also eventful. South Carolina prison rules do not allow on-air interviews, but Smith frequently wrote to reporters, true crime enthusiasts, and potential suitors who later spoke publicly about the letters.

She failed to appeal her conviction, saying her husband David Smith had abused her. He flatly denied this and authorities said there was no evidence.

“For the next 30 years – again, it’s hard to believe it came so quickly – she had sex with the guards. It attracted attention with its social media opportunities. There are sugar daddies who can’t wait until they come out, so support them,” Pope said.

Pope said David Smith plans to join him in opposing his ex-wife’s parole.

In an interview with Court TV, David Smith said he had difficulty remembering his sons. While he forgave Susan Smith, he said that didn’t take away the fact that she killed her children and deserved to spend more than 30 years in prison for it.

“You have no idea how much harm you’ve caused to so many people,” David Smith said in the Court TV interview. “I will do everything in my power to ensure you stay behind bars.”

Pope plans to tell the parole board that when jurors rejected the death penalty, they thought a life sentence meant the rest of his life and didn’t think he could be released after just 30 years.

Pope expects Susan Smith to present her own defense to the parole board. He thinks a mother would try to use the same sympathy and difficulty to convince the board to grant parole to her children that they would do such a thing.

“He’s been rehearsing what he’s going to say to the parole board for 30 years,” Pope said.