#ENDTHEDEATHPENALTY
Former Tennessee death row prisoner's new life sentences to be concurrent


Monday's ruling means Pervis Payne will be eligible for parole in five years. File Photo courtesy of PervisPayne.org

Feb. 1 (UPI) -- A Tennessee judge has ruled that a former death row inmate's new life sentences will be served at the same time, meaning he'll be eligible for parole in five years.

Pervis Payne was initially sentenced to death in 1988 for the slayings of Charisse Christopher, 28, and her 2-year-old daughter, Lacie Jo, in 1987 in Shelby County. Prosecutors said he also non-fatally injured Christopher's 3-year-old son, Nicholas.

But his sentence was reversed in November and replaced with two life sentences after Payne's lawyers challenged the death penalty based on his intellectual disability.

On Monday, 30th Judicial District Criminal Court Judge Paula Shakan ruled that the two life sentences must be served concurrently, making him eligible for parole after 39 years in prison -- about five years from now.

Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich called on the Tennessee attorney general's office to appeal Shakan's decision.

"We respectfully disagree with Judge Skahan's interpretation of the new statute that removed the one-year statute of limitations on claims of intellectual disability. The statute does not authorize changing the original trial judge's ruling that multiple sentences in the case should be consecutive," Weirich said.

Kelley Henry, Pervis's attorney, praised Shakan for "thoughtfully and deliberately" considering the matter

"She followed Tennessee law, which favors concurrent sentences and places the burden on the state to prove that consecutive sentencing is necessary to protect the public," Henry said in a statement to UPI. "The Shelby County D.A. was effectively asking for a sentence of life without parole -- which is not authorized under the law. The plain fact is, Pervis Payne is no threat to society and he never was.