Parole granted to woman who killed friend, stabbed children

Jason Kotowski
·2 min read
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BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Parole has been granted to a Kern County woman who stabbed a friend to death in 1997 and also stabbed her father and two children, ages 8 and 9.

Tammy Lynnette Gessel admitted to the stabbings, telling authorities she used methamphetamine the morning of the attack and thought she was saving her family from demonic possession, according to prosecutors.

Her father and children survived.

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Gessel pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder, and was sentenced to 13 years plus 15 years to life in state prison.

The state Board of Parole Hearings granted parole to Gessel this week, according to inmate records, after a hearing prosecutors say focused on her “insight into violence and her substance abuse and mental health history.”

The District Attorney’s Office opposed her release.

“It’s upsetting that Gessel will have a chance at freedom while one life has been taken, and three others were damaged forever,” District Attorney Cynthia Zimmer said in a news release.

Gessel, 51, was in custody Friday, according to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation records. Gov. Gavin Newsom could refer the case to the full Board of Parole Hearings for review.

On June 4, 1997, authorities responded to a 911 call from a home in Taft and arrived to find Gessel’s father outside, covered in blood with two stab wounds to his back and a slashed cheek, according to prosecutors. He said his daughter stabbed him.

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Gessel’s then-8-year-old son was found on a couch with stab wounds and a cut eyelid. Her daughter, then 9, was located behind the home, also stabbed and covered in blood. It appeared she had tried to crawl away, prosecutors said.

Billy Enos, a friend of Gessel, was found dead a short distance away, according to the release.

Inside the home, Gessel, sitting near the front door, had two self-inflicted stab wounds, according to the release. Court records show she has prior convictions on misdemeanor offenses including assault on a peace officer and vandalizing a cemetery.

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