A man who was released from prison after a judge claimed he would no longer pose a threat to society due to his age has been found guilty of killing a homeless woman.
Albert Flick, 77, spent 25 years in jail from 1979 to 2004 for the brutal murder of his wife, the New York Post reports. Around six years later he was sentenced to further time behind bars for the assault of another woman.
Despite recommendations to keep him behind bars for longer the judge ordered his release from prison in 2014 claiming he was too old to cause any harm.
In a cruel twist of events, Flick has now been found guilty of killing a woman in front of her two children in an eerily similar way to the first murder.
According to the New York Post, the 77-year-old became obsessed with his victim and when she decided to move away he killed her, stabbing her 11 times.
Speaking about the shocking murder Elsie Clement, who watched on his horror as Flick killed her mother in the 1970s, told publication News Center Main the most recent crime could have been prevented if the judge has listened to the words of warning all those years ago.
“I would like to just see [everyone involved] in a line and stand there and tell [the] boys, explain to them how this man was on the streets and how it’s okay,” she exclaimed.
“How the law makes it alright for their mum to now be gone and for them to have to witness it.”
This has sparked a debate over whether or not there is such a thing as being too old to commit a crime. While some may argue deteriorating health both mentally and physically would impact one’s ability to murder another an overwhelming majority have claimed those at risk to the community should remain locked up.
Taking to social media to express their views on the topic most said without a doubt a person still remains a threat in their old age.
“His [Flick] age makes him more dangerous with that mentality,” one person wrote on Twitter. “Nothing to lose if he knows he won’t be around much longer.”
Another added: “If we can’t discriminate based on age then we shouldn’t let people skip punishment because of age either.”
While a third simply said: “No one is too old to kill.”