Kidney for Freedom
Two sisters in Mississippi are being released from prison under an unusual stipulation. Gladys Scott, 36, must donate a kidney to her sister Jamie Scott, 38, within one year of their release.
Jamie Scott was diagnosed with high blood pressure and kidney failure. She began taking kidney dialysis treatment in January 2010 and currently takes them three times a week. The cost to the state is almost $190,000 a year.
The state of Mississippi will not be responsible to pay for Jaime Scott’s kidney transplant. However, the women are likely eligible for Medicaid.
The two women were originally arrested in December 1993 for leading two men into an ambush where three teenagers hit the victims in the head with guns and stole $11. The two women received life sentences for armed robbery and have currently served 16 years in prison. The Department of Corrections believes that the women are no longer a threat to society and they would have been eligible for parole in 2014.
