Wife of Murdered Prison Guard Urges Justice For Man Convicted of Her Husband's Murder
By Sarah Ford on March 4, 2014
The morning of 17 April 1972 will be forever etched on Leontine Rogers’ memory.
The 17-year-old trainee beautician, known as Teenie, woke up early, had breakfast and drove her 23-year-old husband Brent Miller to work. He was a guard at the notorious Angola prison in the state of Louisiana.
A few hours later, she was sitting in class at the beauty school, when her sister turned up out of the blue.
“There’s been an accident. Brent is dead,” she said.
Teenie’s world collapsed. The couple had been married for just three months. Brent had been found dead in a cell with multiple stab wounds.
“Brent was my whole life. He was witty, handsome and talented. He sang and played the drums. He was an all-round good soul. I couldn’t imagine going on without him. It was so hard,” she told Amnesty International.
But what neither Teenie nor Brent’s family knew was that from that point on, their lives would become embroiled in a legal case that has spanned nearly half a century.
The trials of Albert Woodfox and Herman Wallace were deeply flawed. Their convictions reflected the rife discrimination and corruption in Louisiana’s justice system.
A third man, Robert King, was accused of planning the murder from another jail.
All three were placed in solitary confinement following the murder. Together they are known as the “Angola 3”.
In a bizarre turn of events Teenie found herself fighting for justice – not just for her husband - but also for the men convicted of his murder.