Convicted Lillelid killer files new appeal in TN

Karen HowellOne of the Eastern Kentuckians convicted in the 1997 murders of a family in Tennessee is renewing her attempts at appealing her conviction.

According to WCYB News-5 in Bristol, Tennessee, an attorney for former Pike County resident Karen Howell, now in her late 30s, filed documents Wednesday to appeal her case to the Tennessee Supreme Court. Howell was one of five Eastern Kentucky juveniles convicted in the kidnapping and murders of three members of the Lillelid family in East Tennessee. Only the family’s young son survived.

According to the News-5 report, Howell lost an appeal in 2013 and another last April. The report says Howell’s attorney has argued that a Supreme Court ruling on life sentences for juveniles being unconstitutional should allow a post-conviction hearing for Howell.

Howell has expressed remorse for the killings.

The original report can be found here.