`LIFERS' GET FIRST PAROLE HEARING IN 13 YEARS

When Tammy Scheper received notice that one of the murderers of her mother and brothers would have his first parole hearing in the year 2005 -- a mere 13 years after the crimes against her family were committed -- she was shocked.

"We spent the whole day in court at David Rhodes' sentencing, to decide whether or not his life prison terms should be consecutive or concurrent," said Scheper. "I was led to believe that (Rhodes) wouldn't even get a parole hearing for at least 45 years; that he would have to serve the minimum on each of the consecutive terms before they would even consider parole.

"It really mattered to us whether he got what would boil down to one or three life sentences," she continued. "Now, they tell me it doesn't matter one way or the other."

David Rhodes was one of three men convicted for the shooting and stabbing deaths of Curtis, Randy and Sherry Scheper on Aug. 9, 1992, at their Cape Girardeau home.

For pleading guilty to a single count of second-degree murder, John G. Browne Jr., 22, was sentenced to a single life term in prison.

Rhodes, 19, was sentenced to three life prison terms on three counts of second-degree murder, ordered to run consecutively; and 20 years on a single count of first-degree robbery, to run concurrently with the other sentences.

Both Rhodes and Browne entered into plea bargain agreements with the prosecutor in exchange for their testimony against co-defendant Gary Lee Roll.

Roll was sentenced to be executed in late November 1993, and is currently at the state prison in Potosi on death row. Roll pleaded guilty to three counts of first-degree murder and armed criminal action.

At Rhodes' sentencing hearing, Cape County Prosecutor Morley Swingle recommended concurrent life sentences plus 20 years.

"That would have kept in behind bars for about 22 years," the prosecutor said.

On the day that Rhodes was scheduled to be sentenced, relatives of the slain Schepers asked the judge to levy the maximum possible sentence.

Paulette Scheper, wife of Ron Scheper Sr., said that Rhodes, who was armed and in the house when Roll killed the Schepers, could have acted to save the victims. "He was there. he could have stopped some of this," she said.

The judge concurred, sentencing Rhodes above and beyond the recommendation of the prosecutor.

So why was it that Tammy Scheper received notice that Rhodes would receive his first parole hearing in 2005?

"Each sentence has a minimum term a person must serve; `life' translates into about 15 years behind bars," said Bob Newsome, a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Corrections. "According to our guidelines, any prisoner sentenced by the courts to a term over 45 years, must serve at least 15 years of that."

But the maximum amount of time a person can spend in prison without a parole hearing is 13 years, Newsome said.

"Just because (Rhodes) is having a parole hearing in 13 years does not mean he will be released at that time," said Newsome. "The first parole hearing is a chance for the parole board to get acquainted with the prisoner and to tell him what is expected of him if he expects to be paroled.

"His next parole hearing might not be for another five years or so," he added.

For people like Browne, serving a single life term, a release date could be set at the first parole hearing. But the average time spent behind bars for someone serving a life sentence for murder, Newsome said, is about 20 years.

Someone sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for an offense such as first-degree murder, will never receive a hearing.

Newsome said the Missouri Department of Corrections "understands the message sent to them by the courts.

"Rhodes was sentenced to more than one life sentence, consecutively, so we know that they expect us to keep him for a considerable amount of time," said Newsome. "But we also must have some sort of contact with the prisoner.

"It's going to be a long time before someone with three consecutive life sentences is paroled," said Newsome. "We can guarantee that."