I too am outraged that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles had the audacity to show compassion to a killer who had not compassion for her victims. And now it looks like she’s not even as ill as the board claimed she was.
Here are some excerpts from a report by Renee C. Lee of the Houston Chronicle:
OUTRAGE GREETS EARLY RELEASE OF KILLER WHO SET FIRE RESULTING IN THE DEATH OF FOUR NEIGHBORING FAMILY MEMBERS
Prosecutor and victims’ relatives only became aware of the release through the media
By Renee C. Lee
Houston Chronicle
October 17, 2011
A prosecutor and relatives of a young family killed in a Brazoria County apartment fire more than a decade ago are outraged over a decision by the state parole board to release the woman responsible for their deaths.
They want to know why Sadie Proffitt, convicted of murder and not eligible for parole until 2031, was released from prison early.
State officials say medical confidentiality rules won't allow them to answer the families' questions.
A jury convicted Proffitt on two counts of murder in 2002 and sentenced her to 60 years in prison for the deaths of Omar Attar, 18; his wife, Felicita Attar, 18; their infant son, Omar Jr; and Attar's twin brother, Daniel. Proffitt set a fire in her Lake Jackson apartment on Oct. 10, 2000, in an effort to make her husband's death by natural causes appear accidental so she could collect $30,000 in insurance money.
The Attars died, trapped by smoke and flames, when the blaze spread to the apartment above.
State law requires defendants convicted of an aggravated offense to serve at least half their sentence before they become eligible for parole, but the state Board of Pardons and Paroles released Proffitt on May 11 under medically recommended intensive supervision, granted to inmates who are terminally ill or need long-term care and no longer considered a threat to public safety.
The victims' relatives learned of her release in August.
Proffitt, now 66, has a "serous medical condition with severe symptoms," parole board chairwoman Rissie Owens wrote in an e-mail to the Houston Chronicle. "Physicians state that her condition is not expected to improve and her maximum life expectancy is six months to one year."
Skeptical, Brazoria County District Attorney Jeri Yenne, who prosecuted the case, sent an investigator last month to visit Proffitt at the North Texas senior facility where she lives.
The investigator said Proffitt uses a wheelchair but told the investigator that her illness is not life-threatening.
Yenne found out about Proffitt's release the same way relatives of the Attars did, through the media.
The district court in Brazoria County had received a letter from the state in April stating that Proffitt was not eligible for parole until 2031, so Yenne was shocked to discover in August that Proffitt had been released four months earlier.
"The parole board was sending out notification that she was not eligible and at the same time, it was getting a medical parole," Yenne said. "A jury sentenced her to what they believed was the maximum sentence. The board owes the public some answers."
Lawmakers created the medical release program in 1991 to save money. By releasing older inmates and those with significant medical problems, the state avoids costly medical care.
Inmates are referred by physicians, and the Texas Correctional Office for Offenders with Mental or Medical Impairments makes recommendations to the Board of Pardons and Paroles.
Inmates sentenced to death or life without parole and those who commit certain violent crimes are not eligible.
1 comment:
I admit I am surprised the parole board went for that one. Perhaps they were thinking about what she was likely to cost the prison system in medical bills, but that still doesn't make it right, only expedient.
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