Susan Smith, who admitted to drowning her two young sons 30 years ago, was denied parole on Wednesday after she sobbed and begged to be let free from prison. “I know that what I did was horrible. And I would give anything if I could go back and change it,” an emotional Smith said, speaking in front of the parole board on Zoom for the first time. “I love Michael and Alex with all my heart.” On Oct. 25, 1994, then 23-year-old Smith put her 3-year-old son Michael and 14-month-old son Alexander into her car and let it roll into a lake. She then told police a Black man carjacked her and kidnapped the children. But when the police confronted her, she admitted to the murders. “I am a Christian and God is a big part of my life. And I know he has forgiven me,” Smith, now 53, said. Smith’s ex-husband, David Smith, asked the board to deny her parole. “This wasn’t a tragic mistake. ... She purposely meant to end their life,” he said. “I’ve never felt any remorse from her for it.” Smith, currently serving life in prison, will now be eligible for parole every two years.
