State lawmakers urge clemency for woman convicted as teen

NASHVILLE – Several Democratic Tennessee lawmakers are urging Republican Gov. Bill Haslam to grant clemency to a woman convicted of murdering a man when she was a 16-year-old prostitute.

Newly elected Nashville Sen. Brenda Gilmore led a group Friday calling for 30-year-old Cyntoia Brown’s freedom.

Kim Kardashian West, Rihanna and other celebrities have supported Brown as she fights her life sentence for killing a man who had picked her up for sex. Her lawyers say she was a sex-trafficking victim afraid for her life.

Gilmore said it’s a travesty Brown must serve 51 years before she’s eligible for parole, as Tennessee’s Supreme Court recently said. Nashville Rep. John Ray Clemmons said the law should be changed for juveniles.

Haslam deputy counsel Todd Skelton said Haslam’s team is reviewing clemency applications, including Brown’s.