Deborah Peagler

Deborah "Debi" Denise Peagler (December 27, 1959, Pensacola, Florida - June 8, 2010, Compton, California ^[1]) was a battered woman who was in prison from 1983 to 2009 for alleged involvement in the murder of Oliver Wilson, the man who abused her, forced her into prostitution, and molested her daughters.^[2]

Her incarceration became controversial in 2005. Peagler's supporters established a website to publicize her cause.^[3] In 2008, a California Superior Court Judge removed Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley's entire office from Peagler's case due to allegations of misconduct and conflicts of interest.^[4] The California Court of Appeal later reversed that decision, but also found that some of the allegations against the District Attorney's Office were true.

In 1982, Peagler’s abuser was beaten and strangled to death by two Crips gang members who were friends of Peagler’s mother. Peagler was accused of first-degree murder alongside one of the gang members; the other gang member was a minor at the time and was charged with a lesser crime.

Peagler never had a trial by jury. Prosecutors threatened to pursue the death penalty against her, and her attorney urged her to plead guilty in order to save her life. She was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

In 2002, lawyers Nadia Costa and Joshua Safran from the law firm Bingham McCutchen began working pro bono to free Peagler.^[5] Their work relied on a unique California law enacted in 2002. The law gives battered women in prison the chance for a new hearing if the original court never considered evidence relating to abuse.

Peagler’s attorneys in 2007 filed suit against the Los Angeles District Attorney over what they alleged was the broken agreement to free their client.^[6]

Peagler was incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla, California, the largest women’s prison in the country. She directed the prison gospel choir and earned two associates degrees while behind bars.

In February 2009, Peagler was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, and her lawyers attempted to win her release on bail, but the judge declined the request on technical grounds.^[7] On July 10, 2009, she was found suitable for release by the California Board of Parole Hearings. On August 4, 2009, Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley questioned the parole decision in a letter to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in which Cooley suggested that the parole board was wrong to offer Peagler her freedom.

On August 19, 2009, Peagler's family members and community supporters protested outside the Los Angeles office of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, demanding Peagler's release.^[8] On August 20, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger declined to review the parole finding,^[9] allowing Peagler to be released on August 22, 2009.^[10]

Peagler died on June 8, 2010.^[11] Her case is the subject of a documentary Crime After Crime which premiered in January 2011 at the Sundance Film Festival.^[12]

References

1. ^ Erin Richards (January 28, 2011). "Film documents life of Carson woman imprisoned for murder of abusive boyfriend". Daily Breeze. http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/ci_17229830. 
2. ^ The Recorder (06/27/2006)
3. ^ Supporter's web site
4. ^ Jack Leonard (April 26, 2008). "Judge bars D.A. from murder appeal". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/news/local/crime/la-me-cooley26apr26,0,1865063.story. 
5. ^ Elizabeth Fernandez (September 10, 2007). "Crusade for justice: 2 attorneys fight to free Deborah Peagler". San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/10/BALERSQ8G.DTL. 
6. ^ John Spano (December 7, 2007). "Lawsuit says Cooley reneged on promise". The Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2007/dec/07/local/me-battered7. 
7. ^ "Dying inmate pleads for parole". Los Angeles, CA: KABC-TV. http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=6707472. 
8. ^ "Dying woman's family begs for her release". Los Angeles, CA: KABC-TV. http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=6971680. 
9. ^ Russell Goldman (Aug. 20, 2009). "Terminally Ill Convict Deborah Peagler to Be Released". http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=8368552. 
10. ^ "Pro Bono Client Peagler Released From Prison". Aug. 26, 2009. http://www.bingham.com/Media.aspx?MediaID=9615.  (Press Release)
11. ^ http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=76882657349#!/group.php?gid=76882657349&v=wall
12. ^ http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/01/sundance-documentary-steve-cooley-deborah-peagler.html

Persondata
Name	Peagler, Deborah
Alternative names
Short description	Convicted murderer
Date of birth	December 27, 1959
Place of birth	Pensacola, Florida
Date of death	June 8, 2010
Place of death	Compton, California