Tina Talbot, sentenced in husband's slaying, released from Washtenaw Co. prison

A Waterford Township woman convicted in the 2018 death of her husband has been released from prison, state officials confirmed Tuesday.

Tina Talbot left the Huron Valley Correctional Facility for women in Washtenaw County at about 5:30 a.m. after serving her minimum sentence of 20 months, said Chris Gautz, a Michigan Department of Corrections spokesman.

She is expected to remain on parole for at least two years pending a board review, he added.

Talbot's attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

The 53-year-old was sentenced last year to up to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter in February 2019 in the death of Milosz Szczepanowicz.

Talbot's attorney at the time, Jerome Sabbota, said she was a victim of domestic violence and had been defending herself when she fatally shot her husband at their home in September 2018.

Talbot had been abused for two decades and was beaten so badly in the days before her husband's death that she had to seek medical treatment, her attorney said.

The conviction spurred an online petition drive supporting her release.

The Michigan Parole Board interviewed Talbot several months ago and "after talking to her felt she wasn’t going to be a danger to society if released," Gautz said. 

Her husband's family appealed, but an Oakland County judge dismissed the appeal, paving the way for the release Tuesday, he said.

Talbot had been seeking release to care for her son, who has autism.