Leo Schofield, convicted of killing his 18-year-old girlfriend in 1987, was denied parole Wednesday, his fourth unsuccessful effort to gain release even though another man has confessed to the crime.
The parole board voted to transfer Schofield to a prison near Miami that houses a “life sentence program,” designed to prepare life-sentenced inmates for re-entry into society. After completing the program, Schofield would have to go back before the parole board to apply for release.
Prosecutors have adamantly maintained that Schofield stabbed Michelle Saum Schofield 26 times in his trailer, loaded her body into the cargo area of his Mazda pickup truck and dumped her in a remote Lakeland canal. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.
But doubts about his case have been growing because another inmate has confessed. That man, Jeremy Scott, also left his fingerprints on the car Michelle was driving the night she was killed. Scott’s fingerprints were unmatched for years after Schofield was convicted.
Scott has been linked to four murders in Central Florida, all while he was a teenager. He has confessed to killing Michelle several times, but has also changed his mind over the years. “When he comes to confess, it’s terrible,” said Jacob Orr, Polk County’s chief assistant district attorney.
Scott’s most recent statements on the case were part of an interview he gave for al Bone Valley Podcast, which aired last year.
The St. Petersburg Times first reported the fingerprint link to Scott in 2007. The Tampa Bay Times wrote about the case last month.
This is a developing story.
