DALTON, Ga. – Connie and Jeff Payne say they were shocked that the drunk driver convicted of killing their son had access to Facebook, a cell phone and was allowed to work at a fitness center.
The Paynes recently learned that Brent Gilbert, who was convicted of vehicular homicide in 2004 for a wreck that killed their son, James Bradley Payne, had spent much of his term in a halfway house-like transition center rather than prison.
“He’s just had it made,” said Connie Payne, a Floyd County resident. “That’s no way to be punished for killing somebody.”
Gilbert is coming up for parole this month and, on Tuesday, the Paynes were able to express their outrage during a listening session with the state Board of Pardons and Parole in Dalton.
“This was our last chance,” Connie Payne said.