7 prisoners who outlived their sentences

Being imprisoned can be a difficult experience. The surroundings, rules and laws, and lack of personal control can all have an impact on the mental health of the person. Prison is often viewed as a harsh form of punishment because it removes your freedom, possible support networks, and in many ways time with family, friends, and loved ones.

Some die while serving their sentence but there are others who toughen up and complete their jail time. These people, who were mostly jailed at very young ages, served for more than half of a century.

Read about some of them below.

Johnson Van Dyke Grigsby

In 1908, Johnson was sentenced to prison for murder. Over the years, he has been denied parole 33 times

He was eventually released at the age of 89 because he was no longer considered a threat to society. He was released in 1974 after serving 66 years, but he promptly returned to prison voluntarily after struggling to find work.

So he returned to prison for another two years. So, at 91 years old, he was finally out of prison for good. He died at the age of 101.

Paul Geidel Jr.

Paul Geidel, born in 1894. At age 7, he was orphaned. He worked as a porter in New York City in his early teens before being dismissed. He broke into a Wall Street financier’s home. He underestimated and suffocated the victim, who was connected to the Manhattan District Attorney. Geidel was apprehended and sentenced to 20 years to life for the crime.

He ended up spending more than six decades in Sing Sing prison on a murder accusation. He was granted release in 1980 and offered a position in a nursing home. He lived for the final seven years of his life until his death in 1987.

Hugh Alderman

Hugh, the sole survivor of a four-man gang, was a bank robber who was apprehended in 1917 at the age of 23. In 1924, he escaped again, and in 1927, he was released to a mental hospital, where he died at the age of 86. He spent the rest of his life locked for 62 years.

Hugh was able to steal $6,000, which was a huge amount at the time. Per inflation calculations, the money would have been over $100,000 today.

Francis Smith

Francis Smith is the longest-serving prisoner in history. His jail time was 72 years. Smith was engaged in a renowned murder case in 1949. He was accused of shooting a night security guard at the Indian Harbour Yacht Club in Greenwich, Connecticut.

According to reports, suspect George Lowden agreed to a plea deal in exchange for turning state evidence against Smith. Lowden was released in 1966 after serving 17 years in the case. Despite Lowden’s statements, others believe police pressured him into implicating Smith. Smith was finally tried and convicted, serving 72 years in jail before his release in 2020.

Howard Christensen

Howard received a life sentence without parole for the 1937 murder of a teacher. He was 16 years old when he committed the crime. He did the act alongside a 17-year-old who was also arrested. That person was also sentenced to life in prison, but reportedly committed suicide in 1943, only six years after their sentencing.

About 30 years into his prison sentence, his sentence was changed from life without parole to 200 years in prison. However, after serving 64 years in prison, he was released in 2001, but died only two years later.

Joseph Ligon

Joseph Ligon, born in the Deep South, went to Philadelphia at the age of 13 and was involved in a scuffle in 1953, which became a lifelong nightmare. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison for a crime he committed as a teenager.

However, after 53 years in prison, lawyers attempted to modify the system by working on parole documents. Ligon was released after 15 years in February 2021, and at the age of 83, he was reunited with his sister and daughter after 68 years in prison.

William Heirens

In 1945, Chicago police confronted a serial killer who murdered many women. The killer’s statement, written in lipstick near one of his victims’ bodies, read: “For heaven’s sake, catch me before I kill more,” adding “I cannot control myself.”

Six months later, William Heirens was apprehended and found to be identical to the crime site. Heirens admitted to the killings and was sentenced to life in prison. He then said he confessed to avoid the death penalty. Despite disagreements, cops and parole boards accepted Heirens’ confession, which led to his life sentence. Heirens served more than 65 years in prison. He died at 83 years old.