At least three of five criminals getting relief from Gov. Haley Barbour killed their former or current wife or girlfriend. Last week, Barbour stunned the city of Pascagoula by suspending the sentence of Michael David Graham, who murdered his ex-wife Adrienne Klasky Graham in 1989, after years of stalking and harassing her. Graham shot her at point-blank range in the head with a 12-gauge shotgun as she sat waiting for a traffic light to change.
Barbour had granted pardons to five other killers in 2008. At least two of those were also convicted of killing their former or current girlfriends.
"It's disheartening, and it's upsetting to the community," said Sandy Middleton, director of The Center for Violence Prevention, a non-profit organization that seeks to help individuals experiencing abuse.
Without targeted psychiatric treatment, it is unlikely that violent abusers will ever get rehabilitated, Middleton said. The Mississippi Department of Corrections does not have any specific programs for domestic abusers. "The parole board denied (Graham) parole," she said. Ӆ They're the ones who sit down with the psychological reports. They've got the information they need in order to make a fair, unbiased judgment on whether these guys need to be let go or not."
Clarence Jones confessed to stabbing his former girlfriend, Carla M. Smith, 22, to death in 1992. According to the Vicksburg Evening Post, Jones waited for Smith in her apartment on New Year's Day, and stabbed her 22 times when she arrived home.
Smith had twice filed assault charges against Jones, and she charged him with trespassing just two days prior to her murder. Warren County Circuit Judge Frank Vollor sentenced Jones to life in prison for Smith's murder. He was eligible for parole in 2002.
Recidivism is a serious issue among domestic abusers, with most studies citing repeat rates of 30 percent to 70 percent. A 2006 Canadian study puts the number at 32 percent, but also shows that the same percentage had 10 or more convictions for domestic violence over the course of their lives.
"The abuser does not assume responsibility for the abuse," said Trina Allen, a therapist who specializes in domestic violence cases. "When you look at the fact that Mississippi ranks No. 2 in the nation for domestic violence, and No. 9 for single-victim homicides as a result of domestic violencewhen you look at those numbers, and you look at what the governor is doing with pardons, we have to really question our judicial system and our legal system," Allen said. "What is the evidence that this won't happen again?"
"If the governor wants to pardon them, that's his business, but at least find out all the facts," said former Warren County District Attorney Gil Martin, who prosecuted Jones and Paul Joseph "Jody" Warnock. "I think (Barbour) made a mistake, and I think he knows that."
The Vicksburg Evening Post reported that Warnock shot girlfriend Carol Ann Hall, 18, once in the back of her head on Feb. 17, 1989, as she slept. Warnock was charged with murder after Hall died the next day. Vollor sentenced Warnock to life in prison in 1993. His first trial, in 1992, ended in a hung jury, with an 11-to-1 vote for conviction.
Barbour pardoned both Jones and Warnock. Then-Gov. Ronnie Musgrove suspended Jones' sentence in 2004. Warnock has been on parole since September 2006. Musgrove did not return calls.
Barbour pardoned two other killers this month. One of them, Willie James Kimble, and his two accomplices robbed and murdered Luther Roberts in 1991. A Leake County jury found him guilty of murder, and Kimble received life in prison in May 1992.
According to The Carthaginian, Kimble confessed to luring the elderly Roberts out of his home by telling him he had car trouble. When Roberts came outside, Deric Jones shot him in the back of his head. Kimble and Jones robbed Roberts and divided the money with Daryl Windham, who helped plan the crime.
Barbour also pardoned Bobby Hays Clark, convicted in Panola County in 1996 of manslaughter, aggravated assault and possession of a weapon by a felon. The Jackson Free Press is investigating the circumstances of his crime. (UPDATE: Clark killed his girlfriend; see new story here.)
Reached last week for comment on the suspension of Graham's sentence, Barbour spokesman Pete Smith would not comment to the JFP, instead e-mailing the following prepared statement:
"Historically, Governors have reviewed cases like that of Michael Graham, whose conduct as a prisoner earned him the right to work as a trusty at the Governor's Mansion, where he has performed well and proven to be a diligent workman. The Governor is giving him a chance through an indefinite suspension of his sentence to start a new life away from Pascagoula and Jackson County, pending his future good behavior; he will continue to be under the supervision of the Mississippi Department of Corrections throughout the period of this suspension of sentence as though he was on parole.
CORRECTION APPENDED:
The story has been edited to remove Larry Harper from the list of prisoners Barbour has pardoned or suspended. In fact, Larry Harper has not received a pardon at all; former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove suspended his sentence Jan. 12, 2004.
Last week, Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Christopher B. Epps told the Biloxi Sun-Herald that Larry Harper, convicted in Scott County on charges of homicide, aggravated assault and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon in June 1999, received a suspended sentence from Barbour in December 2006.
The Department of Corrections then corrected the statement to say that Musgrove suspended Harper's sentence in January 2004, and that Barbour had pardoned him in July 2008.
The Department of Corrections then corrected themselves again, saying that Musgrove suspended Harper's sentence in 2004 and Barbour did not pardon him.
The MDOC correction means that of five prisoners Barbour has assisted in recent weeks, four were for men who killed wives or girlfriends.
Info on Harper, whose sentense was suspended by Musgrove:
Larry Harper confessed to murdering Willie R. Roberts in January 1983 after Roberts evicted him from Eddie's Café for "starting trouble," according to the Jan. 9, 1983, Scott County Sheriff's department offense report. Harper was re-arrested in April 1999 on charges of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm by a felon. In that incident, Harper rammed another vehicle, brandished a weapon and ran a car off the road and into a ditch following an argument with the vehicle's occupants.
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