Jan. 31, 1963 - The Ohio Pardon and Parole Commission today rejected a clemency plea from Dr. Sam Sheppard (pictured left in the early 1950s), convicted of wife slaying. The commission, in a 4-0 vote, decided against reducing the physician’s sentence to make him eligible for parole consideration or to reduce his sentence to time served. The commission’s action means that Dr. Sheppard will not be eligible for parole consideration until 1965, when he will have served a minimum of 10 years of his life sentence. The commission had planned to make its announcement at a Friday morning news conference, but its decision leaked out after the commission learned Mrs. Ariane Tebbenjohanns, a German heiress who claims she is engaged to Sheppard, wished to be on hand. Mrs. Tebbenjohanns said Monday night she had fallen in love with Sheppard during three years of correspondence and became engaged to him during a four-and-a-half hour visit at the Marion Correctional Institution last Thursday. Sheppard was convicted of the 1954 murder of his pregnant wife, Marilyn Reese Sheppard. The case was controversial from the beginning, with extensive and prolonged nationwide media coverage.
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