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Man who murdered second wife gets 60 years in prison

Kristine Guerra
kristine.guerra@indystar.com
Tony Degrafreed, 52, was sentenced to 60 years in prison for murdering his second wife. He had already spent about a decade in prison for killing his first wife.

An Indianapolis man who was imprisoned for killing his first wife more than 20 years ago has been sentenced to another prison term for killing his second wife.

Tony Degrafreed, 52, was sentenced Friday to 60 years in prison for the 2014 death of Rebecca Degrafreed, who was found with a head injury in the couple's Northeastside home.

Officers found Rebecca Degrafreed in July 2014 on the bedroom floor of the couple's home in the 5700 block of Laurel Hall Drive. The 47-year-old woman died of blunt and sharp force traumatic injuries to the head and neck, according to the Marion County Coroner's Office. 

Prosecutor seeking life without parole for husband accused of killing wife

The killing happened less than a decade after Tony Degrafreed was released from prison. He was convicted of killing his first wife in 1994 and was sentenced to 30 years. At that time, murder in Indiana was punishable by 30 to 60 years in prison, and offenders served at least 50 percent of their sentence, assuming they received credit for good behavior. Degrafreed was released in 2006 after serving a little more than a decade behind bars.

The second murder happened shortly after Indiana's new sentencing guidelines took effect on July 1, 2014. Under the new criminal code, which imposes more severe punishments to violent crimes and high-level felonies, murder is punishable by 45 to 65 years in prison with an advisory sentence of 55 years. Violent offenders also must serve at least 75 percent of their sentence.

Degrafreed was arrested on July 20, 2014. He will receive credit for the 440 days he already spent in Marion County Jail.

The Marion County prosecutor's office initially sought a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, but that request was dismissed following a plea agreement between Degrafreed and prosecutors, online court records show.

Star reporters Michael Anthony Adams and Justin Mack contributed to this story. Call Star reporter Kristine Guerra at (317) 444-6209. Follow her on Twitter: @kristine_guerra.