Governor Commutes Gaile Owens' Death Sentence

Governor Phil Bredesen has commuted Gaile Owens' 1986 death sentence to life in prison, effectively halting her scheduled execution on September 28. The decision was based on two major considerations: the possibility of abuse and psychological conditions resulting from the abuse in her marriage, and the fact that Owens accepted a plea bargain for life imprisonment before going to trial. This commutation has no bearing on Sidney Porterfield's case, who was also sentenced to death for the same murder.

Key Takeaways:

• The governor reviewed 33 similar Tennessee cases of women arranging and being charged with the murder of their husbands, with only two resulting in death sentences.
• Of the 31 other cases, one woman is serving life in prison without parole, and the other 30 are serving life sentences with parole possible.
• Owens' lawyers cited a "battered spouse syndrome" defense, which has been used successfully in similar cases since then.
• The governor granted Owens 1,000 days of sentence credits, making her eligible for parole consideration as early as late 2011.
• The commutation order also grants Owens the right to participate in the normal sentence credit process in the future.
• Owens is a model prisoner, helping other young women in prison, and was found guilty of first-degree murder.
• The governor cited the fact that nearly all similar cases in Tennessee resulted in life sentences as a reason for commuting her sentence.
• Bredesen said he spoke only with one of Owens' lawyers, George Barrett, and purposely avoided others who sought to meet with him about the case.

Statistics:

• 33: The number of similar Tennessee cases reviewed by the governor.
• 2: The number of cases resulting in death sentences.
• 31: The number of cases with life sentences.
• 1: The number of cases with life imprisonment without parole.
• 30: The number of cases with life sentences and parole possible.
• 1,000: The number of days of sentence credits granted to Owens.
• 25: The number of years Owens would have earned sentence credits had she received a life sentence.
• Spring 2012: The earliest possible parole consideration for Owens.
• Late 2011: The possible parole consideration for Owens based on sentence credits earned.

Sources:

• The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, Tenn. - July 14, 2010
• McClatchy-Tribune Information Services - July 14, 2010