A South Carolina mother convicted of killing her two sons by drowning them in a lake 30 years ago is up for parole. Susan Smith is serving a life sentence for rolling her car into a lake with her 3-year-old and 14-month-old boys strapped into their car seats in 1994.
At her trial, prosecutors said Smith killed her children because the man she was having an affair with didn’t want children.
When she was convicted, South Carolina law stipulated that she be eligible for a parole hearing every two years now that she’s served 30 years.
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Smith will make her case for freedom to the parole board by video link from prison Wednesday, Nov. 20. According to The New York Post, she was not able to find a single character witness to testify on her behalf.
As of Monday, Nov. 18, 471 people had written to the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services regarding Smith’s hearing, NBC News reported. Only six of the letters were in favor of her release.
Smith’s ex-husband and the father of the children will also take part in the hearing and is expected to argue against letting her out, as is the former prosecutor who oversaw this case.
For Smith to be released, a simple majority of the seven-person parole board must approve it.
