Hall has alleged both in and out of court that she had been a victim of violent attacks by Braxton — Hall says that he had choked and punched her. Whenever it seemed like she might bolt, he threatened to take her children — a son from a previous relationship, and two kids with him — and never allow her to see them again. Not long after that hospital visit in late 2004, Hall and her boyfriend, Robert Braxton Jr., were arrested and charged in the abuse of their children. A BuzzFeed News investigation last year found that Hall was one of at least 28 mothers in 11 states who had been sentenced to 10 or more years in prison for failing to protect their children from abusers — despite evidence the mothers themselves had been abused. Hall's abusive boyfriend, who admitted to breaking the ribs and femur of their 3-month-old daughter, was sentenced to only two years and was released from jail in 2006. Having lost her first attempt at parole, she will have to wait until 2016 to try again. She asked the judge for a modified sentence, and was denied.  OKLAHOMA CITY — Tondalo Hall, a battered woman whose lengthy prison term in a child abuse case has outraged women's rights advocates, had her plea for clemency denied on Wednesday. "The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board had the responsibility to make things right and they failed with today's decision," said Shaunna Thomas, co-founder of UltraViolet, a national advocacy group that garnered 70,000 signatures in a petition demanding the board set Hall free. But the board, which recommends applications for commutation to the governor, seemed “incredulous” that Hall hadn’t taken more action as it questioned her, BuzzFeed reported. Her division focuses on “only the children.” White also did not recall that someone else called 911 when Lindley hadn’t, but White said that fact didn’t mitigate her sense of Lindley’s guilt. “I had never been questioned before.” 
 
 Though Hall immediately pleaded guilty, Braxton’s case went to trial. Hall testified at his trial, but frustrated prosecutors because she did not provide many details on witness stand about how he had abused her children. The case against Braxton began to “fall part,” as Marsee, who was also the prosecutor in his case, put it at Hall’s sentencing, and Braxton was offered a plea deal that released him after two years. Had Mendez just pled guilty, instead of taking his case to trial, he probably never would have learned of the abuse Mendez meted out on Phanthtaranth. Lindley, she said, watched Turner “torture” her only son, “and then she got in her car with her friend to get hair products.” White said, “She deserved what she got.” White did not initially remember that her office had viewed Lindley as a victim, having charged Turner with assaulting her on the day he killed Titches. ‘Oh, it couldn’t be me.’ But you really don’t know.” Titches would be 11 years old now. You’re turning to the most vulnerable person to set policy for law enforcement.” 
 
 In the years since her sentencing, Hall says she has done her best to become a better mother. A call from a mother would have carried more weight than one from a neighbor, White said, and the fact that someone else phoned didn’t relieve Lindley of her duty as a mother to take action. I loved and cared for my children and I would appreciate the opportunity to watch them grow up.” 
 
 Hall’s sentence ends in 2034, when she will be 50 and her children fully grown adults, according to the Oklahoman. She isn’t eligible for parole until she serves 85 percent of her sentence — not for another 15 years. Arkansas Department of Correction 
 
 Photograph by Wil Chandler for BuzzFeed 
 
 BuzzFeed Judge Kenneth Watson.
– Tondalo Hall wasn't accused of abusing her two young children but was handed a 30-year sentence for failing to protect them from her abusive boyfriend. Her partner, meanwhile, nabbed a plea deal and served just two years for breaking the ribs and femur of their 3-month-old infant; he was released in 2006. The 31-year-old Hall appealed for clemency to the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, but that appeal was denied Wednesday, leaving her with at least 15 more years behind bars and frustrating women's rights activists, BuzzFeed reports. The board—whose vice chair "seemed incredulous" during the hearing that Hall hadn't done more to help her kids, BuzzFeed notes—offered no explanation for its 5-0 decision against Hall, whose plight had received publicity from a BuzzFeed investigation last year. In court documents, testimony against Hall's boyfriend indicated he choked and punched her regularly, was verbally abusive, and isolated her from family and friends, the Washington Post notes. In her commutation application, Hall—whose sentence ends in 2034, with the possibility of parole in 2030—acknowledged her past mistakes but says she's since dedicated herself to becoming a better mom, taking parenting and anger management classes and earning her GED. "Despite my failures, I did not physically abuse my children," she wrote. "I was an active parent and a proud mother. I loved and cared for my children and I would appreciate the opportunity to watch them grow up." The co-founder of a national advocacy group that got 70,000 signatures on a petition to release Hall tells BuzzFeed, "The [board] had the responsibility to make things right and they failed with [Wednesday's] decision." Read more on her case here.