Murderer in Notorious Pamela Smart Case Granted Parole

After a quarter of a century in prison, the killer of a Derry man has been granted parole, according to WMUR-TV.

William “Billy” Flynn, who turned 41 today, got the ultimate birthday gift – freedom – after he was paroled in Concord after being involved in a murder case that gripped the nation during the 1990s, due to the scandalous and violent nature of the crime.

Flynn was 16 at the time that he shot and killed Gregg Smart in 1990. He was a student at Winnacunnet High School in Hampton who was seduced by his teacher, Pamela Smart, Gregg’s wife.

Pamela Smart, who grew up in Windham and Derry, was later convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder and is serving life in prison, without parole, in New York. According to the court case, she convinced Flynn to murder her husband after threatening to break up with him. Flynn and Patrick Randall, a teen accomplice, broke into the Smarts’ condo in Derry. Randall held Gregg Smart while Flynn shot him in the head.

They later testified against Pamela Smart during her trial. She has always denied knowing about the murder plot but was secretly recorded acknowledging the plot by a confidante.

Flynn pled guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 28 to life, along with time served before and during the trial.

A number of documentaries and films have been made about the case including “Murder in New Hampshire,” a television movie, “Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart,” an HBO documentary, and the Nicole Kidman film, “To Die For.”

Caption: A file photo of Billy Flynn from 2008.