In 2003, Susan Brown was 30 weeks pregnant when her estranged husband came to her Detroit home. She says he beat her, raped her and stabbed her in the stomach, and that she fought back to save herself and her unborn child. He died. Susan waited on the curb for police, gave birth by emergency C section hours later, and was then charged with premeditated first degree murder. She has been serving life without the possibility of parole ever since.
After years of work by advocates and a public commutation hearing before the Michigan Parole Board, Susan's bid for clemency was denied.
In this episode, Susan joins me again to talk about how she has coped since hearing that news, what it took to keep going, and what happens now. Because the door is not closed. Susan gets to try again, and she is already preparing to do exactly that.
We also talk about the very polarising situation of a female prisoner whos death sentence was carried out and failed, twice.
","author_name":"Jack Laurence"}