Man, 78, Jailed 1 Year in 'Mercy Killing' Is Freed

LINCOLN, Neb. — A 78-year-old man who said he shot and killed his ailing wife in her hospital bed to end her pain has been freed after serving a little more than a year of his two-to-five-year prison term, parole board officials said.

Vernal "Bob" Ohlrich was set free by a unanimous vote of the parole board Wednesday as he made a tearful apology for the killing of his wife of 57 years.

Ohlrich fatally shot 74-year-old Phyllis Ohlrich on Oct. 27, 1998, during one of his numerous visits to her bedside. Phyllis Ohlrich was hospitalized for what Ohlrich said he thought was stomach cancer, but the autopsy didn't find any cancer.