Democracy Dies in Darkness
Virginia

Doctor released from Va. prison two years after being pardoned

Vince Gilmer was a North Carolina physician when he murdered his father. Diagnosed with a brain disease, he became a symbol of mental health issues in prisons.

By
May 23, 2024 at 11:53 a.m. EDT
Vince Gilmer was released from this prison in Marion, Va., on Thursday. (Earl Neikirk/AP)
4 min

More than two years after being pardoned for a murder conviction, Vince Gilmer finally left a Virginia prison Thursday, resolving a controversial case that has drawn attention from around the world.

Gilmer is gravely ill with Huntington’s disease, a neurological disorder that was undiagnosed at the time of his conviction for the 2004 murder. His case became a rallying point for advocates who say mental illness is mishandled by the criminal justice system.