22 March 2023 :
(March 18, 2023) - Former death row inmate Thomas Schiro released from prison.
Eyewitness News learns today that Thomas Schiro, a man convicted of murder and rape who once faced the death penalty, is walking free. Schiro was originally sentenced to death for the 1981 murder of Laura Jane Luebbehusen, but on January 7, 2023 Schiro was released from prison.
On February 5, 1981, Luebbehusen, 28 years old at the time, was found dead in her home, strangled and sexually assaulted by then 20 year old Schiro, who was an inmate of a halfway house in Luebbenusen’s neighborhood. Schiro entered her home after he told her he was having car trouble and needed assistance.
The interaction eventually turned violent. According to police, Schiro raped Luebbehusen several times before striking her in the head and strangling her, later sexually abusing the corpse. Schiro was sentenced to death in October of 1981. That sentence was overturned in August of 1996 when the Supreme Court determined the sentencing judge overstepped his bounds by going against the jury’s recommendation the death penalty should not be imposed. Schiro’s sentence was changed to 60 years in prison.
According to the Indiana Department of Correction, Schiro was released on January 7, 2023, entering a 1 year supervised parole program. The IDOC also confirming Schiro now lives on his own in Vanderburgh County. There is no word on the exact location.
If there are no violations, Schiro’s supervised parole will end in January 2024.
https://www.tristatehomepage.com/news/former-death-row-inmate-released-from-prison/
https://www.newsbreak.com/evansville-in/2961338388071-former-death-row-inmate-released-from-prison