In the United States, the most severe penalties for crime are the death penalty or life in prison. Often, though, people who get these ultimate sentences end up getting released on legal technicalities or for good behavior. Others must be released because they have completed their sentences and can no longer be legally detained. This means the government is releasing some of the most heinous criminals imaginable right back into our midst. Here are some of the most notorious of them. 

What is Parole?

Some people serve their full sentence in prison while others are released early on parole. The idea of parole is to allow well-behaved prisoners who show signs of no longer being a danger to society to complete their sentence living in the community under the supervision of a parole officer. The intention is to smooth their reintegration into society and relieve prison overcrowding. A convict who fails to meet the conditions of their parole can be arrested and returned to prison. 

When Can a Prisoner Qualify for Parole?

Usually, a prisoner must serve 30-50% of their sentence before being considered for parole. Those who are sentenced to life in prison can qualify for parole in 10-15 years depending on the laws of the state where they are serving their time. A parole board reviews each case, keeping in mind the severity of the offense, the estimated risk the inmate presents, their behavior in prison, and testimony from the criminal, their victims, prison staff, and professionals in fields like psychology and criminal justice. 

Conditions of Parole

Some of the typical conditions parolees must meet include:

• Having a stable place to live.
• Being employed or working on their education.
• Meeting routinely with a parole officer.
• No contact with victims, their families, or criminal accomplices. 

Here are some examples from the U.S. and other countries of notorious criminals who have now been released back into society after completing their sentences, or early on parole. 

Jeffrey Powell (California, U.S.)

• Crime: He committed murder in a home invasion, which was retaliation for a confrontation between his friend and the victim’s family. 
• Sentence: Convicted in 2013 and sentenced to 16 years to life. 
• Status: He completed only 10 years, 40% of his sentence, then was granted parole in 2023. This was hugely controversial, due to his long criminal history, involvement with the Aryan Brotherhood, and poor behavior in prison. 

Anthony Senter and Joseph Testa (New York, U.S.)

• Crime: Known by the nickname “the Gemini Twins,” the pair committed at least 10 murders in the 1970s and 80s during his involvement with the Gambino and Lucchese crime families. 
• Sentence: Both were sentenced to life in prison, starting in 1989.
• Status: Senter was released on parole in 2022 and Testa in 2024. 

Edward Kindt (New York, U.S.)

• Crime: Raped and murdered a woman named Penny Brown in 1999.
• Sentence: Went to prison for life in 2000.
• Status: Granted parole and early release in 2023, after 23 years in prison.

Sheila Keen-Warren (Florida)

• Crime: In 1990, Sheila Keen was having an affair with her boss, Michael Warren. She decided to dress as a clown delivering balloons and shot and killed Mrs. Warren when she answered the door. Sheila and Michael later married in Las Vegas. 
• Sentence: This was a cold case until improved DNA evidence gave authorities the grounds to arrest her in 2017. However, due to the complexity of the legal process for such an old case, backlogs of cases, and delays caused by COVID-19, Keen-Warren was not convicted until 2023.
• Status: Because she had already done 7 years of incarceration while awaiting trial, this was credited to her sentence of 12 years. Her sentence was further reduced for good behavior, and she accepted a plea deal to shorten her jail time further. In the end, she was released in November 2024, having served only about 8 1/2 years for this premeditated murder.
• What about Michael Warren? There was never enough evidence to prove his involvement in the plot, but he was sentenced to 4 years in prison in 1994 for crimes of theft and fraud committed in his used car business. 

Karla Homolka (Canada)

• Crime: Homolka helped her husband torture, rape and murder three young women, including her sister, between 1990-1992.
• Sentence: As part of a plea bargain deal, Karla was sentenced to 12 years for manslaughter, which most of the public considered an outrageously light sentence for the brutality of these crimes. Her husband received life in prison. 
• Status: She completed her sentence from 1993-2005 and was released from prison. She married her lawyer’s brother and lives in Quebec.

Jens Söring (Germany)

• Crime: Söring was an international student who was dating an American girl in Lynchburg, Virginia. In 1985, he murdered her parents and fled to the U.K. British authorities returned him to the U.S. for trial. 
• Sentence: He was convicted of the crime in 1990, and sentenced to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. 
• Status: Instead of completing his sentence in the U.S., he was deported back to Germany in 2019, having served 33 years. Since then, he has written books and appeared in several media productions about the case, maintaining his innocence.  

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