Comments on: Pamela Smart: Gunman ended my life, too

By: Sheena

Sheena — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 15:49:44 +0000

I totally agree with Taylor on this!!!! Pamela Smart should be released. She has done her time, and was very young as well when this happened. She is guilty of having an affair with a boy, who took matters into his own hands along with others to do the killing. She was 21 and he was 16, not a big difference really. She loved Greg very much, I do know this. She would never have wanted this to happen. Greg would never want her to spend the rest of her life in prison, he would be very sad at what happened. I knew them both, and I find this a terrible tragedy. Not one but two people lost their lives.

By: Taylor

Taylor — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 21:39:29 +0000

It is an injustice that the defendants who held the gun to Gregg Smart's head and pulled the trigger, should be let out of prison early. Even if Pamela Smart is guilty, her sentence is unduly harsh. Life in prison without the posssibility of parole? Are you kidding me? Even Charles Manson gets the benefit of a parole hearing. I think that Pamela Smart is innocent. New Hampshire needed a scapegoat and Pamela Smart was it. The prosecutors badly needed a "win" and they tried to build a case against Pamela Smart. Of course Billy Flynn and Patrick Randall lied on the stand; they were offered the deal of the century for implicating her. Anyone in their right mind would have taken the deal the prosecutors offered. Pamela Smart has been in prison for nineteen years. It's time to rethink her sentence and let her go. As to the "boys" they should get out too.

By: jweeuns

jweeuns — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 20:59:11 +0000

They say "25 is the new 21". Young people today don't really grow up until at least 25 years of age. According to that scenario, in the case of Bill Flynn's culpability at 16 for knowing what he was doing in taking the life of Greg Smart, we shouldn't really give full weight and measure to the youth of today for crimes they commit until they are at least 18 to 20. We prosecute "kids", however, as young as 10 for similiar crimes. We all, as grownups, realize what ditzes we were at 16. Those with half a brain left are even grateful we made it through those years. How many of us can truly say, however, that we weren't truly aware of things like knowing right from wrong or what the law said in that regard at the time. We made conscious decisions with regard to our actions-and they generally had to do with whatever "pleasure centers" we were enabling at the time. Just because he now has remorse doesn't make what he did any less horrific. Like most everyone, I'm glad Pamela Smart got a longer prison sentence. Bill Flynn's trial testimony was certainly compelling. How could you not feel sorry for him? I can't help asking myself how I would feel if Greg was MY brother. If we "forgive him", we'll have to dig into our prison system and start considering the extenuating circumstances of multi-thousands. At 16, we HAVE CHOICE. If you can't do the time,...don't do the crime! Keep up the good work in prison, Bill.

By: brian

brian — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 17:27:44 +0000

pamela smart not only took her husband's life but those teengagers that were involved in his murder. if she just apologizes and shows how sorry she is for her role in greg's murder and for ending billy flynn's life at a young age just maybe she will be granted clemency just by telling the world that she was involved in the murder and how remorseful she is.

By: rucruzin

rucruzin — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 16:06:44 +0000

I heard this case was eliminated from the "innocence project" consideration list and wanted to know why. After reading about 30 of the references of the hundreds on Google I've come to a conclusion. This woman is INNOCENT, and by the way there is a Santa, an Easter Bunny, pots of gold at the end of a rainbow and alien abductions. Sorry Pame (rhymes with lame right?) your life has been reduced to little more than a wikipedia reference card at a table game. I know this is hard to comprehend but NOBODY CARES! I feel the most pity for this attention seeking, middle aged, dyed blond, sad sack posing woman's mother. She is so heartsick and pitiful and it breaks my heart everytime I see that "women who kill" commercial – "It was Billy Fylnn not my daughter, I know it was Billy because my daughter told me so, and my daughter always was a nice person." OK Pame (rhymes with dame right?) sure is cool that while sitting in a cell you got graduate degrees from a GED college. That proves something all right, that someone who probably deserved a shot at an education got just the shot instead. The world has grown sick of the "pity me card" so please stop playing it – OJ tried that one about a month ago and you see how well that worked. Hey heres a thought Pame (rhymes with fame right?) – study Theology so everyone will see how this was always the real you. Oh yeah thats right you are already doing that. Destined for a life spent in religious service – called to the cloth. Wasn't that the route Jim Jones took too? Oh and he never killed anyone either right? Now you want money for your defense fund? Maybe you can convince VanHalen to play a benefit for you, God knows they owe you for their fame – hey that rhymes with Pame too doesn't it? You did the crime, serve your time and shut the hell up. After you become a minister you should focus on a Psychology degree. Hey Pame (rhymes with blame right?) try to spend a lot of time studying the chapters that focus on how no cure can happen until the person admits their failure and their guilt. For the sake of your dedicated Mom and Dad admit that the "oh what a series of unfortunate and incredible coincidences happened to me" tale belongs more in Gullibles Travels then in their mind as a reason to keep sacrificing their life for yours. Hey Pame (rhymes with game right?)

By: Louise

Louise — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 23:23:53 +0000

At 14, I didn't think much of the party line that she was this great manipulator, and I still don't. None of these people are such great prizes. If we accept the trial's outcome as the right one, then she was a 22-year-old selfish, conniving, moron. He was a 16-year-old selfish, conniving moron. He actually shot someone and ended their life because she threatened to leave him if he didn't. That's a choice. They both made terrible choices and someone ended up dying.

Maybe he has reformed himself, I'm sure he'll always be weighed down by guilt. But I'm fine with the judge's decision. Those who commented before had it right – he already got his reduced sentence, and he did it by pointing the finger at someone else and making a deal. And come on now, people, really? At 16 he didn't know better and it's all her fault?

By: Jayque

Jayque — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 01:45:41 +0000

If you want to let your heart bleed, let it bleed for the victims. This was murder. There should be no time off for good behavior. You can't make up for death.
At 16, I knew murder was wrong, that's why I didn't kill anyone, although, there were plenty of people I would've liked to. That's just part of growing up, getting picked on, and dealing with hormones. But no matter how you feel, you still know murder is wrong. You should know this by the time you're five years old. Anyone that feels he should be let out early for coughing up a few tears in front of a judge probably hasn't had a child, spouse, or parent murdered. There is lots of injustice in the world. Punishing a criminal is not part of it.

By: C.L.

C.L. — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 21:37:01 +0000

What an extremely well-written and informative blog. I wish more were like this. Concise, to the point, no frills. Correspondant Beth Karas is on the mark! The court should not and cannot give any consideration to Smart's proclamation of innocence. Like the old saying goes, you never meet a guilty person in prison.

By: SSGELFMAN

SSGELFMAN — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:04:28 +0000

I think Bill Flynn desvers another change at life, he has admitted his quilt from the start, whereas Pamela Smart has denided any involment in her husband murd. Bill has made strives to improve himself & I believe he has succed. Pamela has done nothing to try and improve herself. So I say give Bill a chance it appears that he has a lot of support and that is something that most people don't get when they are getting out of prison and that is why they wind up back in prison. As for Pamela Smart let her rot in prison.

By: Pt in NJ

Pt in NJ — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 14:53:10 +0000

In response to MetalMan's post, which included the following:

"My God, don’t women take responsibility for their actions anymore in this country?"

Excuse me, sir, but I believe the problem with the world today is that NO ONE takes accountability for their actions anymore, regardless of sex or gender. As a commuter who works in NYC, I can assure you that I meet many men daily who aren't so kind to hold a door for the person behind them, or even offer their seat on a packed train for a pregnant woman who's about to pop.

Perhaps if society recognized that generosity and humanity are all-encompassing facets of life, then maybe we could make progress. How dare you insinuate that only women are the only persons to lack manners?

I agree that Pamela Smart is a ninny who deserves exactly what was handed down to her, but to blindly classify all women as unapologetic, ill-mannered heathens is a gross disservice to the point you are trying to make. It also makes you look like a narrow-minded opressive pig.

The next time you see a man whistle at a woman, or hear of a man hiding the wife he murdered in his freezer, or hear of a man who killed the woman he raped and buried her in a shallow firepit in his backyard (along with her unborn, full-term baby), YOU ask YOURSELF how you could possibly bemoan women as the only parties responsible for the decline in accountability in society today.