By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Two longtime state inmates, each of whom was convicted in Escambia County of crimes committed while they were already behind bars, were denied parole during hearings held recently by the Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles.
James Christopher McFarley, who turned or will turn 52 this year, has spent more than 30 of the past 32 years in jail or prison. He was sentenced to life (with the possibility of parole) after being convicted in 1997 by a Tuscaloosa County court of first-degree rape, first-degree robbery, first-degree sodomy, first-degree burglary and second-degree assault.
In 2004, while reportedly an inmate at Holman Correctional Facility, he was convicted of second-degree assault and handed another 15-year sentence, to be served concurrently. He has been imprisoned for more than 25 years, with 478 days of jail credit included.
In 1988, McFarley, who is currently doing his time at Staton Correctional Facility near Wetumpka, was sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted of receiving stolen goods. Four years into that sentence, he drew an additional five years for promoting prison contraband.
He served more than seven years of that term, including 165 days of jail credit and accumulation of more than five years of “good time” (nearly three years of which were eventually revoked). He will never get out of prison unless he is paroled or pardoned.
Also considered for parole but turned down was David Peters, who is or will soon be 43 years old.
Peters is currently serving 38 years, 20 for a 2004 Conecuh County conviction on second-degree and third-degree burglary charges, and 18 for a 2009 second-degree assault conviction in Escambia County, a crime that was reportedly committed while he was an inmate at Fountain Correctional.
Peters, who is currently housed at Bibb County Correctional Facility in Brent, has been behind bars for more than 21 years, including 1,508 days in jail awaiting trial and/or transfer. His minimum release date, without parole or a pardon, is January 26, 2038.