Pamela Smart, convicted in 1991 for her role in the murder of her husband, Gregory Smart, is seeking a new trial, arguing that prosecutors misled jurors by presenting transcripts of secretly recorded conversations that contained inaccuracies.
Smart, now 58, filed a petition for habeas corpus relief in Merrimack County Superior Court, which was heard Monday. Her attorneys contend that jurors were influenced by transcripts that included words, such as "killed," "busted," and "murder," which they claim are not clearly audible on the original recordings. This, they argue, directed jurors toward a predetermined conclusion and swayed the verdict.
Merrimack County Superior Court Judge James Kennedy is expected to issue a ruling within 30 to 60 days. Smart was convicted at age 22 of being an accomplice to first-degree murder after prosecutors alleged she manipulated her 15-year-old lover, William Flynn, into killing her husband. She has been serving a life sentence without parole since her conviction.
Pamela Smart testifies during her 1991 murder trial in New Hampshire. Smart is serving life without parole for her role in the killing of her husband, Gregory Smart, and is seeking a new trial through a habeas corpus petition.
During the hearing, Smart's attorney, Matthew Zernhelt, presented new forensic research suggesting that written transcripts can influence jurors' interpretation of difficult-to-hear audio. He also pointed to recordings made by a juror after each day of the trial, which he argued demonstrate the juror's reliance on the transcripts.
Assistant Attorney General John Drennan urged the court to dismiss the petition, stating that Smart is attempting to relitigate issues previously decided by appellate courts. Prosecutors argued that most of Smart's claims were either raised and rejected by the New Hampshire Supreme Court on direct appeal or could have been raised earlier but were not. The state also noted that the defense at trial only challenged the transcripts on the issue of "doubling" of voices, not the specific inaccuracies now being claimed.
FILE - In this March 9, 1991, file photo, Patrick Randall, 17, testifies in Rockingham County Superior Court in Exeter, N.H. Randall held a knife to Gregory Smart's throat in May 1990 as Billy Flynn, who was Pamela Smart's teenage lover, shot him in the head. Flynn was paroled last month; Smart is serving life without parole after being convicted of plotting the murder.
Prosecutors further argued that jurors were instructed to rely on the recordings themselves if they differed from the transcripts, and that the New Hampshire Supreme Court previously found that Smart's attorneys had not made a specific showing of inaccuracies or prejudice. Drennan also challenged the scientific study cited by Smart's team, questioning its methodology and its ability to demonstrate actual prejudice.
Smart's legal team also raised claims that widespread media coverage tainted the verdict and that jurors received flawed instructions. Additionally, they contend that Smart, convicted as an accomplice, should not have received a mandatory life sentence without parole.
In 1990, Flynn and Patrick Randall, then 17, entered the Smarts' condominium, where Gregory Smart was killed by a gunshot. Flynn and three other teenagers involved in the planning and execution of the murder later cooperated with prosecutors and have since been released from prison.
This legal challenge comes after Smart publicly accepted responsibility for her husband's death in a 2024 prison video. She stated that for years she had deflected blame as a coping mechanism but now takes full responsibility for her part in the murder.
Pamela Smart takes responsibility for 1990 murder of her husband in prison statement.
Smart has unsuccessfully challenged her conviction through various state and federal courts over the past three decades, and her requests for sentence reductions and clemency have also been denied. The case, one of the first murder trials to be broadcast live nationally, inspired the novel "To Die For" and its 1995 film adaptation.