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Convicted Murderer Reali Goes Before Parole Board

DENVER (CBS4) - On Wednesday morning a woman who has spent years in prison for the killing of her lover's wife will go before a parole board.

Jennifer Reali was sentenced to life in prison in 1992.

Reali has always claimed Brian Hood convinced her to murder his wife by saying it was the only way they could be together. Hood is also in prison.

Former Gov. Bill Ritter commuted Reali's sentence earlier this year to bring it in line with Hood's.

Reali has already spent 20 years behind bars.

Her first chance at freedom comes 19 years earlier than expected.

Reali told CBS4 in an exclusive interview that she wants to help women when she gets out of prison.

She said knows she will always carry the label of convicted murder, but a chance outside of prison allows her the opportunity to reinvent herself.

"I am not the woman I was 20 years ago," Reali said.

"I was born in 1962, and I don't know when I'm going to die -- and the dash in between those doesn't just say convicted murderer. There's a lot of other stuff that defines who I am."

Without Ritter's commuted sentence Reali would not have been eligible for parole until 2030.

The woman murdered in the case was Dianne Hood. Her family called Ritter a "gutless coward" for commuting Reali's sentence without contacting them first for their opinion.

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