A man convicted of brutally killing his wife nearly 20 years ago, while his children were home found out if he'll be able to get out of jail.
The Nebraska Parole Board discussed Mark Schnabel's case in executive session for 7 minutes before denying his release from prison Thursday morning.
He's convicted of killing his wife Sandy Schnabel in May of 1999. Sandy, a beloved volleyball coach and teacher at Yutan, was beaten to death in their home. Her husband then tried to cover it up by creating a car accident scene with sandy’s body under the vehicle and set the vehicle on fire.
He was sentenced to life in prison, but the judge didn't order a minimum sentence so he automatically received a minimum of 20 years.
The board heard testimony from sandy’s friends and family before making their decision.
“I still remember the sounds, I remember the way she screamed and I remember the sound of whatever he hit her with and I remember the fire. I remember the next morning he took us aside and told us to our faces that there had been an accident,” said Trevor Schnabel, son Sandy and Mark. "It has been incredibly difficult to lead a normal life in the shadow of this brutality."
The board unanimously denied parole for Schnabel and he will have a review in November 2017. That does not mean that he will have another parole hearing next year but it means that they will bring him back, review his case, talk about the programs that he is going through.
