Susan Smith

Susan Smith, of Union, South Carolina, was convicted of murdering her two sons (3-year-old Michael and 14-month-old Alex), and is now serving a life sentence. She is due for parole in 2005.

The case gained national attention because she initially told police (on October 24, 1994) that she had been carjacked by a black man and that her sons were still in the car when the man drove off. For over a week, Smith made tearful pleas on television for the return of her children. However, she finally confessed to having rolled the car herself into a nearby pond, drowning her children inside.