Gypsy Rose Blanchard Granted Parole: An Inside Look at a Controversial Case
Oct 03, 2023, 11:00 AM
In a recent announcement from the Missouri Department of Corrections, as reported by Ozarks First and the Springfield News-Leader, Gypsy Rose Blanchard, previously convicted for her part in her mother's murder, has been granted parole. Scheduled for release on December 28, 2023, Gypsy will have completed nearly 85% of her decade-long sentence by then. This case has remained in the public's consciousness not just due to its chilling nature, but also because of its portrayals in multiple documentaries and series.
Back in July 2016, Gypsy, now 32, admitted her guilt in the harrowing killing of her mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard. The judicial system handed down a 10-year prison term. Before this, Gypsy had also spent some time in Greene County Jail, which is credited towards her overall prison time.
The backdrop to this crime was disturbing. Dee Dee Blanchard's lifeless body was discovered in June 2015, leading authorities to swiftly charge both Gypsy and her then-boyfriend, Nick Godejohn, with first-degree murder. As investigations progressed, a disturbing narrative surfaced. Dee Dee had manipulated everyone - from family members to friends and the wider community - into believing that her daughter was a terminally ill teenager, with the cognitive capability of a 7-year-old, battling multiple diseases including muscular dystrophy and leukemia.
Adding to this twisted tale, Gypsy recounted that her mother silenced her during medical consultations, issuing warnings that escape attempts would be futile as law enforcement wouldn't credit her accounts. Reflecting on her turbulent past in the 2018 documentary Gypsy's Revenge, Gypsy divulged, "I couldn’t just jump out of the wheelchair because I was afraid and I didn’t know what my mother would do. I didn’t have anyone to trust.” After her sentencing in 2016, she confided to Dr. Phil McGraw, "I don’t believe [I] deserve as many years as I got. I believe firmly that murder is not okay. But I also understand why it happened, and I don’t believe that I’m in the right place to get the help that I need.”
Her ex-boyfriend, Godejohn, also 32, faced a different fate. In 2019, the Springfield News-Leader, in tandem with local channels KY3 and KOAM, reported his life sentence without parole possibility. This stemmed from his indisputable role in the 2015 fatal stabbing. Godejohn, who met Gypsy online and journeyed from Wisconsin to be with her in Missouri, reminisced about his time with her in a 2019 prison interview for the Oxygen special Gypsy Rose & Nick: A Love to Kill. “Those five days were the most intense, magical, and awe-inspiring days I’ve ever had,” he claimed.
However, the relationship between Blanchard and Godejohn has since fizzled out. PEOPLE magazine was informed by a close family friend in April 2019 that Gypsy had found new love, becoming engaged to a man she got to know while incarcerated.
This gripping story attracted widespread media attention, leading to its depiction in the HBO documentary Mommy, Dead and Dearest, and was the inspiration behind Hulu's miniseries The Act.
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The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK’s Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
Back in July 2016, Gypsy, now 32, admitted her guilt in the harrowing killing of her mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard. The judicial system handed down a 10-year prison term. Before this, Gypsy had also spent some time in Greene County Jail, which is credited towards her overall prison time.
The backdrop to this crime was disturbing. Dee Dee Blanchard's lifeless body was discovered in June 2015, leading authorities to swiftly charge both Gypsy and her then-boyfriend, Nick Godejohn, with first-degree murder. As investigations progressed, a disturbing narrative surfaced. Dee Dee had manipulated everyone - from family members to friends and the wider community - into believing that her daughter was a terminally ill teenager, with the cognitive capability of a 7-year-old, battling multiple diseases including muscular dystrophy and leukemia.
Adding to this twisted tale, Gypsy recounted that her mother silenced her during medical consultations, issuing warnings that escape attempts would be futile as law enforcement wouldn't credit her accounts. Reflecting on her turbulent past in the 2018 documentary Gypsy's Revenge, Gypsy divulged, "I couldn’t just jump out of the wheelchair because I was afraid and I didn’t know what my mother would do. I didn’t have anyone to trust.” After her sentencing in 2016, she confided to Dr. Phil McGraw, "I don’t believe [I] deserve as many years as I got. I believe firmly that murder is not okay. But I also understand why it happened, and I don’t believe that I’m in the right place to get the help that I need.”
Her ex-boyfriend, Godejohn, also 32, faced a different fate. In 2019, the Springfield News-Leader, in tandem with local channels KY3 and KOAM, reported his life sentence without parole possibility. This stemmed from his indisputable role in the 2015 fatal stabbing. Godejohn, who met Gypsy online and journeyed from Wisconsin to be with her in Missouri, reminisced about his time with her in a 2019 prison interview for the Oxygen special Gypsy Rose & Nick: A Love to Kill. “Those five days were the most intense, magical, and awe-inspiring days I’ve ever had,” he claimed.
However, the relationship between Blanchard and Godejohn has since fizzled out. PEOPLE magazine was informed by a close family friend in April 2019 that Gypsy had found new love, becoming engaged to a man she got to know while incarcerated.
This gripping story attracted widespread media attention, leading to its depiction in the HBO documentary Mommy, Dead and Dearest, and was the inspiration behind Hulu's miniseries The Act.
Want to listen to ALL of our podcasts AD-FREE? Subscribe through APPLE PODCASTS, and try it for three days free: https://tinyurl.com/ycw626tj
Follow Our Other Cases: https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com
The latest on Catching the Long Island Serial Killer, Awaiting Admission: BTK’s Unconfessed Crimes, Delphi Murders: Inside the Crime, Chad & Lori Daybell, The Murder of Ana Walshe, Alex Murdaugh, Bryan Kohberger, Lucy Letby, Kouri Richins, Malevolent Mormon Mommys, Justice for Harmony Montgomery, The Murder of Stephen Smith, The Murder of Madeline Kingsbury, and much more! Listen at https://www.truecrimetodaypod.com