Iowa Juvenile LWOP Prisoner Released to Hospice Care

by Mark Wilson

In what is being described as an “unprecedented” decision, on December 3, 2013, the Iowa Parole Board ordered the release of a terminally ill prisoner who was sentenced to life without parole (LWOP) as a juvenile to hospice,.

Kristina Fetters was 14 years old when she killed her great-aunt, Arlene Klehm, 73, in 1994, by hitting her in the head with an iron skillet and stabbing her at least five times. At 15 years old, she was the youngest person ever sentenced to LWOP in Iowa.

For 18 years, Fetters lived with virtually no hope of ever leaving prison alive. That changed, however, when the United States Supreme Court issued its landmark 2012 ruling in Miller v. Alabama, 132 S. Ct. 2455 (U.S. 2012), holding that juvenile LWOP sentences are unconstitutional.

In addition to thousands of others across the nation, the decision gave Fetters and 37 other Iowa LWOP prisoners renewed hope of a second chance, of a life beyond prison walls.

Sadly, however, Fetters, 33, felt her hopes and dreams die just as quickly as they were born; in September 2013, she was diagnosed with inoperable stage IV breast cancer. Still, she and her loved ones continued to press for her release, hoping she could at least die outside of prison walls.

In November 2013, Polk County District Court Judge Douglas Staskal resentenced Fetters to the possibility of parole. He also recommended that the Iowa Parole Board immediately release Fetters because of her declining health.

During a December 3, 2013 parole hearing, board members debated Fetters’ release, noting that a state oncologist reported that she had responded to hormone therapy treatment. While suggesting that the cancer cells in her bones may have shrunk, the doctor admitted that her condition likely remains terminal.

“I would recommend or throw out to the board that perhaps we should wait a little while to see what happens with the treatment for Ms. Fetters,” said Board Chairman Jason Carlstrom, who initially opposed Fetters’ release. “Her response to treatment may change the kind of re-entry plans that need to be made for her.”

Board member Doris Kelley disagreed, noting that the oncologist agreed that Fetters would receive better care in a hospice facility than in prison.

Ultimately, the Board voted to grant Fetters parole to Hospice Care of Central Iowa, according to The Des Moines Register. The Board said it would revisit its decision, however, if she ever improves enough to be able to leave the facility.

Short-lived and conditional as it may be, Fetters is the first Iowa prisoner to be released following Miller.

Sources: Associated Press, Des Moines Register

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