Convicted Child Killer Released From RI Prison 11 Years Early
CRANSTON, R.I. (CBS/AP) -- A Rhode Island man convicted of killing a young boy in 1975 has been released from prison and sent to a state mental health facility.
Fifty-three-year-old Michael Woodmansee, who served a little less than 29 years of a 40-year sentence for second-degree murder, was released early Friday from the state prison in Cranston.
State Department of Corrections spokeswoman Tracey Zeckhausen said that the transfer from the Adult Correctional Institute to the Eleanor Slater Hospital in Cranston began around 5 a.m. She said it took place "under tight security and without incident."
The father of the 5-year-old victim had threatened to kill Woodmansee if he was released, calling Woodmansee a monster and a cannibal who ate his son's flesh off his bones.
Woodmansee was released two days early because of a scheduling conflict with the hospital, which does not accept patients on the weekends.
Officials said Woodmansee is only the second prisoner in memory to be civilly committed upon his release.
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