From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Board of Pardons denied parole to three prison inmates from Jefferson County on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020.
Michael Anthony Blair was sentenced in 2000 to 35 years in prison for a murder in Jefferson County. Blair’s attorney said the murder was a result of gang violence and that Blair has matured during his time in prison. However, the attorney general’s office said Blair has committed 53 disciplinary infractions, one of them just last week.
Blair’s co-defendant, Emanuel James, was also denied parole Wednesday. James was sentenced in 2000 to 25 years in prison. He has been accused of 36 disciplinary infractions in prison.
Finally, Eric Dewayne Brown was denied parole. Brown was sentenced in 2001 to 25 years in prison for murder and two first degree robberies in Jefferson County. In 2012, Brown was convicted of conspiring to commit certain felonies in Elmore County. At that time, he was sentenced to two years in prison. The twin sister of the murder victim testified to the parole board, urging it to deny parole.
“Every day I’m missing her…” the sister said. “It has destroyed my life.”
The attorney general’s office said Brown has committed 13 disciplinary infractions in prison and called the murder “heinous.”