Ex-Beauty Queen Sentenced To 4 Years In Prison

Ex-beauty queen Peggy Sue Thomas was sentenced to four years in prison for her role in the murder of a man in 2003.

Although she was initially facing decades behind bars for luring Russel Douglas to his death, Thomas was sentenced to four years in prison on Friday. According to The Seattle Times, the ex-beauty queen is to begin her sentence immediately.

Thomas’ four-year sentence was reportedly part of a plea deal. Island County prosecutors determined that trying the woman for Douglas’ murder would ultimately prove too risky. As a result, she didn’t get the sentence the victim’s family was hoping she would receive.

Superior Court Judge Alan Hancock urged Thomas to explain the motive behind Douglas’ murder.

He said:

“I call on her to give a full account of what she knows. Without this information there will always be a cloud over this. If Ms. Thomas does not tell everything she knows, it is only fair she be tormented the rest of her life by what she knows.”

KOMO News explains that Thomas conspired with her boyfriend James Huden to murder Russell Douglas after leading him to a location on Whidbey Island. The victim was found shot to death inside a car just a few days after Christmas in 2003. Thomas was arrested and charged with murder in 2011.

Although she originally charged with first-degree murder, she later pleaded guilty to rendering criminal assistance. Jim Douglas, the victim’s father, believes Thomas’ punishment does not fit the crime.

He explained:

“It seems like a travesty of the basic sense of justice that she would be sentecned to less than four years in prison for the cold and premeditated act that could not have happened without her involvement.”

The former Miss Washington winner’s boyfriend was convicted of murder last summer. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison for the crime.

Do you think the ex-beauty queen should have been sentenced for longer than four years?