Here is the email I received from the Florida Department of Corrections

Our records indicate that a Glen Consagra, DOB 7/11/1940, FL DC # 066800
was admitted to state prison on 11/22/1978 on two second degree murder
charges out of Pinellas County. He was paroled to supervision on
12/22/1992.

Central Records
Florida Department of Corrections

The information above correlates exactly with an obituary I found online placing the date of his death on 8/21/96. So yes, Consagra did get a few years of freedom it seems, and he is no longer with us.

Interesting info. I guess that covers it both ways. If Consagra is guilty of the two murders than he did have to spend 14 years in prison and if he is innocent at least he got a few years of freedom before he passed away.

Yes, if Consagra did do it, than he did his time and in fact got off relatively easy. If he didnt do it, well than at least he got a few years of freedom before he passed away. However I find it interesting how Consagra got 14 years for two counts of 2nd degree murder yet in the same state, Tommy Ziegler got sentenced to life for 2nd degree murder. However the judge had a personal beef with Ziegler that was his misfortune.

Yes, if Consagra did do it, than he did his time and in fact got off relatively easy. If he didnt do it, well than at least he got a few years of freedom before he passed away. However I find it interesting how Consagra got 14 years for two counts of 2nd degree murder yet in the same state, Tommy Ziegler got sentenced to life for 2nd degree murder. However the judge had a personal beef with Ziegler that was his misfortune.

I have not seen the Ziegler case in quite some time. Did he actually receive a trial or did he plead out? I don't know if you've seen the segment on Consagra, but he was facing the death penalty and did plead guilty to save his life. He was sentenced to two consecutive life terms. The issue of his culpability aside, I think he's darn lucky if he only served 14 years of two life sentences. A part of me does still wonder if perhaps he was exonerated or maybe given some kind of deal. Interestingly enough, it was mentioned in the segment that Consagra's attorneys originally told him he would be eligible for parole in six months (this was before the two life sentences were handed down). I also find this fact surprising considering the severity of the charges. I wonder if this is the "ridiculous" plea deal that state attorney Doug Crow was referring to. Perhaps Crow found it strange that Consagra would have been told/believed he was eligible for parole and possible release in six months when in fact he was looking at and pleading to two life terms. I wonder if Glen's attorneys misinformed him. On the flip side, I suppose Glen's attorneys and the prosecutor could have come to a mutual agreement that was shot down by a judge.

Tommy Ziegler was found guilty in a court of law and while the jury reccomended life inprisonment, the judge overruled them and sentenced Ziegler to die.

With the Consagra case, I just don't understand how he could've gotten parole. Maybe he was exonerated or maybe got time off for good behavior or something? - I think the prosecution in this case despite the wealth of circumstantial evidence comes off still pretty weak and Consagra's advocates seem to have a pretty good case here for his innocence.

Maybe because of the discrepancies in this case Consagra's advocates finally got him paroled.

Maybe because of the discrepancies in this case Consagra's advocates finally got him paroled.

The only other possibility I can think of - Florida is on a determinate sentencing scheme now and I believe the law says that prisoners have to serve at least 85 percent of their sentences. These guidelines were not in place when Consagra was sentenced. Also, if there was some plea deal that could have gotten him out in six months as was mentioned on UM, perhaps it was extended when the two life sentences were imposed. The segment didn't say that he got life without parole. It didn't specifically mention parole either, but I think that we can safely assume that parole was an option for him at some point in the future.

Well in Florida I think at the time Consagra pled guilty it was probably normal for a person to become eligible for parole after serving only 7 or 8 years of a life sentence. It was really not until the early 1980's that they started changing that. I think these days in Florida if you plead guilty to 2nd degree murder the average sentence is 40 years although they can sentence you to less than that or up to life with parole possible after 25 years. I think 1st degree murder is no longer a parole eligible crime in Florida. I believe around 1995 they changed it so you either get death or LWOP for first degree murder in Florida. Before that one became eligible for parole after 25 years.

Ziegler went to trial in July of 1976. He was convicted of two counts of 2nd degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison on those counts. He was also convicted of two counts of first degree murder and the jury recommended a life sentence however the judge overrode them and sentenced Ziegler to death. What I was getting at is that the judge had a well known personal dislike of Zeigler before the murders even happened. He had no business being anywhere near that case. The trial I believe was moved even to a different country for publicity reasons. The murders occurred in Orange County yet the trial was moved to Duval County according to the Florida department of corrections. As for Zeigler being convicted, yes he was, however there are many controversies with that and just because a person is convicted doesnt mean they are guilty just like just because a person is acquitted doesnt necessarily mean they are innocent. First off even in Florida it is practically unheard of for a judge to go against a jury even if he doesnt agree with them giving a life sentence he usually goes with what they want. The judge overrode the jury because of his personal dislike of Zeigler, I think that is a safe assumption to make. Florida also has the crooked system of not requiring the jury be unanimous in order to have a death sentence. I beleive only a majority of the jury has to be in favor. In most states if even one juror is against the DP it does not happen. I think if Florida had the law that required a unanimous jury for a death sentence to happen you would see the size of their death row greatly reduced. In Zeigler's case, the jury started out even split after the first vote, 6 to acquitt, 6 to convict.

However over time, the jury started caving, the jury was out for days on this one I think. Some members of the jury that changed their vote claimed they were bullied and pressured by the members that wanted to convict to change their votes so they could get out of there and go home. Eventually it got to the point where there was one woman holding out that refused to change her vote, she was dragging it on and the jury foreman told the judge that this woman would not change her vote and that the judge knew the case was getting dangerously close to a mistrial. He couldnt handle the thought of Zeigler not going to prison so he called this woman's doctor and had the doctor place this woman on Valium to make her more cooperative. The woman was placed on it and she was unable to resist the other juror's and changed her vote. She said she always regretted that she changed her vote. Years later another juror also admitted he too had been under the influence of valium during the trial and that he too regretted his vote to convict.

As for Consagra, I believe Florida paroled many lifers throughout the 1980's and into the early 1990's. I do not think this policy really changed until the middle 1990's when Florida really completely revamped their sentencing and parole system due to massive crime levels.

Well in the middle to late 1990's is when Florida changed their law so that prisoners had to serve 85 percent of their sentence before being released. This doesnt include lifers who are the only ones that I believe see the parole board and only lifers convicted of 2nd degree murder and prisoners convicted of first degree murder that were charged before 1995 see the parole board. I dont think Florida had life without parole until 1995 when they changed their law for first degree murder so now they have death penalty or LWOP for first degree murder however before 1995 they only had death penalty or life with parole eligiblity coming after 25 years. Hence why death sentences happened more back then because jurors were afraid to sentence someone to life for fear he might get out someday.