30 years after she killed her two young sons, Susan Smith will face a parole board Wednesday as she bids to be released from prison.

Smith was sentenced to life in prison for killing Michael, 3, and Alex, 14 months, who were strapped into their car seats when he drove his vehicle into a lake in October 1994. While she initially claimed the boys were victims of carjackings and kidnappings, she later admitted to letting the car roll down a boat ramp and into the lake with the children inside.

At her trial in 1995, prosecutors said Smith killed her children because she was having an affair with a wealthy man who ended the relationship because she had children. While prosecutors sought death, a jury sentenced her to life in prison.

South Carolina Department of Corrections via TV Court

The past three decades behind bars have not been uneventful for Smith. Jail records reviewed by Court TV list disciplinary issues dating back to 2010, including marijuana use. The most recent offense was in August, when she spoke to a journalist and was disciplined for not only giving interviews, but also paying for them.

RELATED STORY | 4 arrested for fake bear attack videos for insurance payouts

David Smith, Susan’s ex-husband and father of the victims, said Court TV’s Julie Grant in September that although he has pardoned Susan, he does not want her to be released from prison.

“You have no idea how much harm you’ve done to so many people,” David said.

He also opposes the release of Susan Alfred Rowe, a former prison guard who admitted to having sex with Susan behind bars. Two corrections officers were charged for their sexual relations with the convicted felon.

While Susan was sentenced to life in prison, under the law she is eligible for parole after 30 years. Tommy Pope, the prosecutor in Susan’s case, said the jury had no idea when they handed down their sentence.

“In 1995, the jury could not be told that life is not life,” Pope told Julie Grant. “In other words, they were told, ‘Take life in your ordinary, ordinary sense,’ so even after that, the jurors said, ‘She’s going to have to go to jail, she’s going to have remorse for Michael and Alex, and she’s going to be there for the rest of my life.”

RELATED STORY | Murder suspect Laken Riley requests a trial, which means a judge will decide his fate

The seven-member parole board will hear Susan’s case on Nov. 20, but the hearing likely won’t last very long. The parole board of the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardons hears up to 65 cases a day. Susan will not appear in person at the hearing, but will speak to the board via video conference. Victims are invited to participate in person, virtually, by phone, by statement or by submitting a DVD.

To be granted parole, Susan needs at least a two-thirds majority of the panel to approve her application. Before her release, she would have to meet pre-release conditions, which include employment, residency, scheduling and holds. If the board does not accept her request, she is allowed to have a hearing every two years. The board grants parole to about 8 percent of violent offenders, according to publicly available data.

Court TV’s Julie Grant will be live in Columbia for the parole hearing and will be joined by David Smith and Tommy Pope.

This story was originally published by Lauren Silver at TV court.