Women Behind Bars Tuesdays at 10p|9c


The first of these two stories features Jessica Gentry, who was charged with capital murder in connection with the robbery and slaying of her adoptive grandmother. Jessica’s boyfriend Shawn Barclay and their friend, Drew Alexander, allegedly smothered Carolyn Joyce Thomas while Jessica stayed in her room. The three wrapped Thomas in garbage bags and dumped the body in a creek bed under a bridge. The two friends pleaded guilty to murder but Jessica chose to go to trial. She was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. She deeply regrets her actions. On a warm spring day in 1998, Shannon Buard fatally shot 19-year-old Shawana Moss in a courtyard in an apartment complex in Dallas, Texas while neighbors were playing a dice game. Shannon had pulled the trigger in a rage against losing her last $3 in the game, and Ms. Moss was in the line of fire. Although she confessed to the shooting, Shannon explained that she did not intend to kill the victim. After refusing a plea bargain, Shannon was convicted of first-degree murder in a jury trial; she was sentenced to 85 years in prison and given a $10,000 fine. Although she had agreed to be interviewed on camera for this series, she subsequently declined.