A South Carolina mother who drowned her two young children in her car before keeping a string of lovers while behind bars is back up for parole.
Susan Smith was convicted in 1995 for the murders of her two sons, Michael, 3, and Alexander, 1, after she strapped them into her car and rolled it into John D Long Lake in 1994.
Now, Smith is once again eligible for release after she was denied supervised release in 2024 as she continues to serve a 30-years-to-life sentence.
As she was denied parole, the killer mom told men while behind bars over voice and text correspondence that she ‘didn’t cry enough.’
‘They look for remorse and emotion and I guess I just didn’t show enough,’ she told one man, according to transcripts obtained by the Daily Mail.
Smith, currently incarcerated at the Leath Correctional Institution in Greenwood, spent hours on the phone with lovelorn men and sent or received around 15 to 20 text messages a day.
At her last parole hearing, Smith said: ‘I know what I did was horrible. I would give anything so I could change it.
‘God is a big part of my life. He has forgiven me, and I ask that you show that kind of mercy, as well.’
Susan Smith, who was convicted in 1995 for the murders of her two sons, is once again up for consideration for parole in November
Smith’s sons Michael, three, and Alexander, 14-months-old, were strapped into their car seats by Smith, who then let the car roll into a lake in South Carolina
Smith’s ex-husband, David seen in tears after his sons’ funeral in 1995, vowed to attend every parole hearing in the future to ensure she remain behind bars
David Smith, her ex-husband, however, pleaded that she stay behind bars.
‘It’s just not enough,’ he said through tears. ‘I’m asking that you please, please deny her parole today and hopefully in the future, but specifically today.’
David vowed at the time to attend every parole hearing in the future to ensure she remain behind bars.
Smith was a 22-year-old married mother living in Union, South Carolina, when she became internationally infamous for drowning her two sons in a lake near her home.
According to court records, she had started an affair with Tom Findlay, the son of her boss at Conso Products – a home décor trim company.
But after Smith kissed and fondled another man during a 1994 naked hot tub party, Findlay dumped her and told her in a letter that he didn’t want to be with a woman with children.
‘Susan, I could really fall for you,’ Findlay wrote. ‘You have so many endearing qualities about you, and I think that you are a terrific person.’
‘But like I have told you before, there are some things about you that aren’t suited for me, and yes, I am speaking about your children,’ he added.
Smith was a 22-year-old married mother living in Union, South Carolina, when she became internationally infamous for drowning her two sons in a lake near her home
Her ex-husband, David, holds up a picture of his murdered sons and smiles on July 28 after Smith was sentenced to life imprisonment on two counts of murder
‘I’m sure that your kids are good kids, but it really wouldn’t matter how good they may be… the fact is, I just don’t want children.’
A week later, a furious and despondent Smith let her burgundy Mazda roll down a boat ramp into John D. Long Lake with her two sons still strapped into their car seats. She stood on the side of the lake and watched the car sink to the bottom as the boys cried.
After the brothers drowned, Smith falsely told police that a black man had carjacked her, leading to an exhaustive search in which cops went door to door of black residents in the area, interrogating hundreds of innocent men.
For nine days Smith and her husband David made tearful appearances on TV begging the supposed kidnapper to return their boys before she finally confessed to killing them. Authorities dragged her vehicle from the lake with the two boys’ lifeless bodies still strapped in their car seats.
Smith was convicted on two counts of first-degree murder. The jury rejected the death penalty and she was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 30 years.
But Smith told a friend in the summer of 2024 that she was sure she would be freed one day.
‘I will get out of here,’ she said. ‘I am not going to die in prison. I believe that with all my heart.’
Smith, while behind bars, hit headlines again after she had sex with two jailhouse guards in Columbia, South Carolina. The men were later charged with having sex with her and she was relocated to Greenwood.
Smith broke down in tears at her parole hearing in November as she claimed she had found religion, but the parole board rejected her request for freedom
Smith has also had a series of infractions during her incarceration, including drug use, and self-mutilations
Former prosecutor Tommy Pope told Greenville News in 2024: ‘The belief was that she would spend her time thinking about Michael and Alex. It’s clear she hasn’t been thinking about Michael and Alex.’
‘She’s having sex with the guards and now got guys that want her on social media when she gets out of prison. She’s not focused on remorse for the lives she took. I think she needs to continue to serve her sentence and serve it out forward,’ he added.
Smith has also had a series of infractions during her incarceration, including drug use, and self-mutilations.
Then, just weeks before she became eligible for parole, she was convicted of a prison disciplinary charge for communicating with a filmmaker from behind bars.
She was said to have been discussing her crimes, and providing contact information for friends, family and victims, including her former husband. The filmmaker also deposited money into Smith’s account, police said.
If her application for parole is denied, she can apply again in two years. Her hearing is set for November.
Data shows the board grants approximately 8 percent of parole requests for violent offenders.
