CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) - A woman serving consecutive life sentences has lost her appeal in the 1995 murders of two southern New Jersey law enforcement officers.
A state appeals court rejected Leslie Nelson’s request for an evidentiary hearing on Thursday. Nelson had requested the hearing because she says she received ineffective counseling at her sentencing and during a separate appeal.
The 58-year-old killed Haddon Heights police officer John Norcross and Camden County Prosecutor’s Office investigator John McLaughlin. The officers had been attempting to serve her with a warrant to search her home for weapons.
Nelson was arrested after a 14-hour standoff. She pleaded guilty to the shootings under a 1997 plea bargain and was sentenced to back-to-back life terms in prison. She’s not eligible for parole until she serves 65 years.
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