RALEIGH, N.C. (WGHP) – A man from Guilford County who once barely escaped death row now can escape prison before the end of his life – if he can survive a few more years.

Terry Lynn Jordan, charged with murdering his girlfriend, was given a life sentence after being convicted of first-degree murder on Aug. 21, 1991, in Guilford County Superior Court.

But on Monday the North Carolina Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission announced he had earned parole through its Mutual Agreement Parole Program as long as he completes the scholastic and vocational requirements that form that 3-way agreement among the commission, the Division of Prisons and the offender.

If he does, Jordan, 53, would be a free man on May 2, 2026.

The parole commission had announced in February it was considering Jordan’s case through its requirement to review offenders who were sentenced to life under guidelines in place before Oct. 1, 1994, when the state abolished parole for cases involving murder and rape.

The commission gathered information from persons who may be for and against Jordan’s parole and considered the facts of the case. Meeting the specifications of MAPP, which can take months or even years, is the final step.

Pleading for his child

A jury in High Point spared Jordan the death penalty even though they found him guilty of shooting Kimela Denise Hewett three times in the back and head with a handgun and leaving her on the sidewalk outside her home on Windley Street in High Point, the News & Record reported. Hewett, 20, died hours later, on Jan. 10, 1991.

Prosecutors proved that Jordan was jealous because of a broken relationship with Hewett, had been accused of assaulting her previously and had planned the crime, but he avoided the death penalty, one juror told the N&R, because of compassion for Jordan’s 7-year-old son. Jordan had pleaded with jurors to “show sympathy to the family” and spare his life.

The MAPP program

The commission’s announcement says that MAPP is a “scholastic and vocational program” that is a 3-way agreement among the commission, the Division of Prisons and the offender.

To be part of the MAPP program, an inmate must show a desire to improve educational and training programs and a self-improvement process. There is a 3-year walk-up to release that, the MAPP website states, requires the inmate:

• To be in medium or minimum custody.
• Not to be subject to a detainer or pending court action that could result in further confinement.
• To be infraction-free for a period of 90 days before being recommended.
• If sentenced under the Fair Sentencing Act, to be eligible for 270-day parole or community-service parole.

The program also stipulates that “there should be a recognizable need on the part of the inmate for involvement in the MAPP program and the inmate should express a desire to participate in improving educational achievements, learning skills, personal growth programs and modifying specific behavior.”

Jordan, most recently housed at the Forsyth Correctional Center in Winston-Salem, has 11 infractions on his record but none since June 2020, when he was cited for fighting. He has three citations for substance possession and two for weapon possession.

If you want to comment on the consideration of Jordan’s release, you can call the commission at 919-716-3010.