04/07/05 — Duplin killer considered for parole after 23 years

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Duplin killer considered for parole after 23 years

By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on April 7, 2005 1:46 PM

A Duplin county man is being considered for parole from prison after being convicted in 1982 of killing a woman.

Clarence Sheldon Howard, 67, was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of Inez Jernigan, 53, who lived on N.C. 11.

She was beaten and stabbed to death on Easter.

Howard was Jernigan's former pastor.

He was denied parole by the state in 1998.

At the time, former Duplin Sheriff Jernigan, who was chief deputy of the department at the time of the murder, said he believed Howard should not be paroled because of the brutality of the crime.

People who would like to comment on the case may call the North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission at 919-716-3017.