A notorious inmate once held at Auburn Correctional Facility will testify in court later this month, marking his first time on the stand in more than three decades.
Gordon “Woody” Mower, the convicted killer who later gained worldwide attention for plotting a bizarre “coffin escape” from Auburn prison, is scheduled to appear January 28 and 29 in Otsego County Court. The hearing will determine whether his murder conviction should be vacated.
The proceeding follows a unanimous ruling by New York appellate judges last October ordering a fact-finding hearing tied to Mower’s claims of ineffective legal representation. In a 440 motion, Mower alleges his attorneys mishandled his 1996 capital murder case in ways that may have violated his rights.
Among his claims, Mower alleges his lawyers urged him to accept a $10,000 payment from his parents’ estates in exchange for pleading guilty and advised him not to disclose the payment at sentencing. The appellate court cited newly developed evidence in directing the lower court to examine those allegations.
Mower pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for killing his parents in their Richfield Springs farmhouse and received a sentence of life in prison without parole. Years later, while incarcerated at Auburn Correctional Facility, he again drew headlines in 2015 after authorities uncovered a plan in which he intended to escape prison by hiding inside a coffin-like box.
The Auburn connection cemented his infamy far beyond Otsego County, turning the case into a national and international curiosity. Prison officials thwarted the escape plot before it could be carried out.
For the upcoming hearing, Mower will be transported from Shawangunk Correctional Facility to Cooperstown to testify. His three former capital defenders and several members of the Mower family are also expected to take the stand.
Mower is now represented by defense attorney Melissa K. Swartz, who is known for overturning a manslaughter conviction in the nationally followed Kaitlyn Conley case.
The full story of Mower’s crimes, imprisonment, and Auburn prison escape plot is the subject of a forthcoming book by true crime author Susan Ashline. Ungrateful Bastard: The Shocking Journey of a Killer and Escape Artist is scheduled for release February 5.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to [email protected].