Up to seven years sentence
Mitchell is sentenced to between 2 1/3 years and seven years for her part in Matt and Sweat’s escape. Before sentencing she claims that Matt threatened to kill her husband if she didn’t help him and Sweat escape.
If I could take it all back I would. I can’t begin to explain how sorry I am for all this…Why I did what I did I don’t know, other than that I was scared for my husband.
She also offers to wear an ankle bracelet for life, which Judge Ryan rejects:
Ms. Mitchell I just don’t find that explanation credible, your husband’s life just would not have been in more danger…You did terrible things. At any time, you could have stopped the escape from happening.
He also notes that New York State officials estimate the cost of the search for Sweat and Matt at $23 million.
But staggering as the economic costs to New York State may be, the economic and non-economic cost suffered by so many people is incalculable. A large portion of the population was terrorized…[Law enforcement] traversed deeply inhospitable territory, never knowing if the next step they took would be their last.
