Atlanta Child Murders Suspect Denied Parole

Caption

Wayne Williams, suspect in the Atlanta Child Murders, was denied parole once again on Monday. / Associated Press

A man considered the main suspect in a string of killings of black children and young adults in Atlanta in the 1970s and 1980s has been denied parole.

The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles made the decision last month in the case of 61-year-old Wayne Williams. The more than two dozen killings, mostly of black boys, terrorized the city from 1979 to 1981.

Read: Police To Re-Test Evidence In Atlanta Child Murder Cases

Williams was sentenced in 1982 to serve two life prison sentences after being convicted of murder in the killings of two adults. While authorities blamed him for the other killings, he was never charged.

A Nov. 20 parole board letter to Williams said he hasn’t served enough time given the “nature and circumstances” of his offenses. The board set his next parole consideration for November 2027.

According to the AJC, from 1988 to 2005, Williams was denied parole four times.