Dana Barker Wiki – Dana Barker Biography
The United States Supreme Court ruled in 2012 that people who are serving life sentences non-parolees for offenses committed as minors are eligible to request re-sentencing hearings and A&E “Children Behind Bars: Life Sentence or Probation” follows the cases of some of these previously convicted juvenile offenders seeking a new sentence.
Every episode explores the story of an inmate who committed a crime as a minor and is now attempting to be released or re-sentenced to a lighter sentence than would make him eligible for parole. The second episode of the second season, “Dana,” follows 45-year-old Dana Barker, who was convicted of murdering her stepmother Brenda Barker in 1994 and is now trying to get a re-sentencing hearing.
Barker is in prison in Oklahoma, where he continues to fight for a re-sentencing hearing.
Oklahoma Corrections public records show that Barker is currently incarcerated at the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center, a facility for inmates in McLoud, Oklahoma. Barker, now 45, was admitted to the facility in 1995 and her sentence is listed as first-degree murder with a life sentence without parole.
Public records also show that Barker’s attorney filed a motion to vacate his conviction on August 13, 2020. This motion followed several requests for post-conviction relief, including requests filed in 2018 and 2019.
There are currently two legal battles underway, according to the Oklahoma State Court Network, one that builds on the United States Supreme Court decision to provide re-sentencing hearings for minors sentenced to life in prison without parole.
The second is to request that the court rule on whether the state of Oklahoma has the jurisdiction to sentence her or whether it should be handled by federal courts in light of a 2020 Supreme Court ruling that roughly half of Oklahoma is in a Native American reservation, such as NPR reported.
Read Also: Villalobos Rescue’s Founder Launches GoFundMe: ‘We Are Scared’ of Hurricane Ida
Barker said he should serve a sentence for the murder he committed but doesn’t think he should live the rest of his life in jail.
Barker said Border in an interview he realizes that he committed a horrible crime and has taken responsibility for what he did, but does not believe that he should be in prison for life. “I should have gone to jail. I did something horrible, but I don’t know if I should have given up the rest of my life, ”he added.
Former Okmulgee County District Attorney Tom Giulioli told the outlet that he does not believe Barker has shown any remorse for his crime. “He had a very cold personality. She never showed any emotion, “he told The Frontier. Barker disagreed with Giulioli, saying: “I don’t think it’s a fair assessment. I’d like to know what your definition of remorse is. ”
Brenda Barker’s daughter Kerry Whitley has made it clear that she does not believe her mother’s killer should be convicted again and said in 1995 that Dana Barker should spend the rest of her life in prison, The Frontier reported. Whitley recently said on Facebook that she appeared on A & E’s “Kids Behind Bars” to make sure her mother’s voice is heard too, not just Dana Barker’s.