It’s been almost ten years since 19-year-old Lucas Leonard was beaten to death in a counseling session at the Word of Life Church in Chadwicks and one of the nine church members who were convicted is now out on parole.
According to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision’s incarcerated database, Tiffanie Irwin, 39, was interviewed for parole in August and released on parole on Sept. 2.
Irwin was sentenced alongside her brother Joseph to 12 years in state prison after pleading to first-degree manslaughter and second-degree assault, both felonies.
Irwin allegedly led the counseling session in which Lucas and Christopher Leonard, who was 17 at the time, were assaulted.
The teenagers’ sister, Sarah Ferguson, was found guilty at trial in 2016 of first-degree manslaughter, two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of first-degree gang assault and was sentenced to 25 years in state prison.
According to DOCCS, Irwin will be on post release supervision until Sept. 2, 2030.
This article originally appeared on Observer-Dispatch: Former Word of Life pastor released on parole
Reporting by Casey Pritchard, Utica Observer Dispatch / Observer-Dispatch
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
