NC appeals court temporarily halts inmate release, giving state a chance to argue against it

NC appeals court temporarily halts inmate release

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s appeals court has temporarily blocked the release of two convicted murderers sentenced under a 1970s law that limited life terms.

The court clerk issued an order Monday afternoon approving a request to halt the case, but he gave no explanation. The decision gives state attorneys another chance to argue the inmates should not be set free.

Superior Court Judge Ripley Rand had ordered convicted murderers Alford Jones and Faye Brown freed earlier Monday. Their attorneys convinced Rand that sentence-reduction credits have shortened their life terms, which were defined as only 80 years when they were sentenced.

Rand had set a 5 p.m. deadline for the Department of Correction to release Jones and Brown.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Attorneys in North Carolina scrambled Monday to halt the release of two convicted killers serving life sentences.

Superior Court Judge Ripley Rand set a 5 p.m. deadline to free Alford Jones and Faye Brown, two of several dozen inmates sentenced during a period in the 1970s when state law defined a life term as just 80 years.

A few hours before the deadline, the attorney general’s office asked the state court of appeals to keep Jones and Brown in prison until judges there can hear arguments.

“This order will for the first time ever in the history of North Carolina require our Secretary of Correction to unconditionally release an inmate serving a life sentence,” wrote Tiare B. Smiley, a special deputy attorney general.

Attorneys for Jones and Brown argued that they had earned a variety of sentence-reduction credits while behind bars, meaning that with the 1970s limit on life sentences, their terms are now complete. Other inmates have also asked to be released, but judges have not yet ruled on their cases.

Rand’s decision was a blow to Gov. Beverly Perdue’s attempt to keep the violent criminals behind bars. State officials say they are concerned because they will be released unconditionally without any kind of supervision.

“I’m furious,” Perdue told reporters while visiting Camp Lejeune, vowing again to try to stop the release. “I have been really angry about this whole process.”

Jones was convicted of killing William B. Turner Sr., who was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery in January 1975. Brown was sentenced for her role in the 1975 shooting death of a state trooper during a bank robbery.

Sarah Jessica Farber, an attorney for Jones and Brown, praised Rand’s decision.

“It’s really straightforward and reflects what we’ve said all along: This is pretty simple,” she said.

State lawyers had argued that the credits awarded to Jones and Brown were to be used for purposes of parole eligibility. They also said the Correction Department has never given sentence-reduction credits to inmates with life sentences.

Rand, however, said the inmates were allowed to and did receive credits — discounts that should be applied to the 80-year terms. The Department of Correction could have limited how those credits could be used, but, he wrote in his ruling, “It did not.”