Clemency granted for Patty Prewitt, Missouri woman convicted of husband's 1984 murder

Kendrick Calfee, The Kansas City Star on Dec 21, 2024

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson commuted the sentence of Patricia Prewitt, who had spent 40 years behind bars for her husband’s 1984 murder, among other reduced sentences and pardons announced Friday.

Prewitt, 75, has maintained her innocence while serving a life-sentence for the killing. For years, lawyers and advocates have criticized the case, and blamed an inadequate investigation and flawed trial for her imprisonment.

The Feb. 18, 1984 murder of William Edward Prewitt, 35, shocked the small community of Holden, near Warrensburg, who knew the Prewitts as an “all-American couple,” according to previous reporting by The Star.

Patty Prewitt claimed an intruder entered their home that morning, shot her husband while he was sleeping and attacked her with a knife. Investigators at the time said there was no sign of forced entry and quickly turned their attention to Patty Prewitt as a suspect.

Prosecutors at the trial claimed Patty Prewitt tried to dispose of a gun by throwing it into a pond on their 40-acre rural property. But, the state said, the gun stuck like a dart, forcing her to wade in and push it down. Investigators believed a boot print found near the pond bed matched boots belonging to Patty Prewitt.

Patty Prewitt became the state’s longest-serving female prisoner. Since her incarceration, her family, including their five children, claimed she was wrongfully convicted and fiercely advocated for her release. The case has been featured in documentaries and followed by local and national media for decades.

A website advocating for her clemency claimed investigators ignored credible leads pointing to an intruder and failed to collect key evidence that could have identified a person who Patty Prewitt says assaulted her and murdered her husband.

Patty Prewitt was freed Friday afternoon, the Associated Press reported, before the governor publicly announced his clemency decisions. The commuted sentence for Patty Prewitt does not pardon her of the murder conviction, but grants her release on parole.

The conditions of Paty Prewitt’s parole were not immediately clear.

Family of Patty Prewitt released a statement on social media following the announcement of her commutation.

“I am so grateful to be home with my family for Christmas. Thank you to Governor Mike Parson and to all the people who have supported me over the years,” Patty Prewitt said in the statement.

Patty Prewitt’s case was among nine commutations and 16 pardons announced by the governor Friday, wrapping up the remaining clemency petitions of his administration before the Christmas holiday week.

Among the 25 names granted clemency was Eric DeValkenaere, the former Kansas City police detective convicted in 2021 of involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of Cameron Lamb, a Black man, in December 2019.