WWJ Newsradio 950 - Fugitive Mom To Face Escape Charge

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Posted: Monday, 21 July 2008 5:13PM

Fugitive Mom To Face Escape Charge

Southfield (WWJ) -- Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has decided to charge a California mother with escaping a Plymouth prison 32 years ago.

If convicted, Susan Lefevre could face up to five more years in prison. She's already back in Michigan serving at least 5 years for drug crimes after being caught 32 years after fleeing the prison.

The 53-year-old mother of three was arrested in April outside her home in an affluent area of San Diego.

"We cannot have people walking away from prison. While it is admirable that Ms. LeFevre has made something of her life she must accept responsibility for her earlier behavior. Inmates must know there is a consequence for escaping prison,” Worthy said in a statement.

The escape charge would be served after her sentence for selling heroin.

Barbara Klimaszewski, one of LeFevre's attorneys, said she regrets that prosecutors ``decided to allocate the time and resources of Wayne County taxpayers to this case. I hope we can achieve a result that's appropriate.''

Prison officials have said it wasn't uncommon for prisoners to walk away from minimum-security prisons in the 1970s.

Last week, LeFevre asked a Saginaw County judge to set aside her original heroin sentence.

Her attorneys said that at the time of her sentencing, when she was 19, the circuit court's policy was to give all Saginaw defendants in heroin cases 10 to 20 years, regardless of their individual characteristics or criminal records. The policy later was ruled improper by the Michigan Supreme Court.

While the motion didn't specify how long her new sentence should be, Klimaszewski said a first-time offender such as LeFevre pleading guilty to dealing a small amount of drugs likely would get probation under today's law.