DA: Tulare woman who murdered husband returns to prison after violating parole

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. ( KGPE/KSEE ) – A Tulare woman was sent back to prison after she was released for the murder of her husband, prosecutors say.

According to the Tulare County District Attorney, 61-year-old Annette Batten stabbed her husband to death in 1995 following an argument where he tried to remove their children from their home. Batten was granted parole in 2017 after serving two decades of her 25 years-to-life sentence.

Prosecutors say after being released, Batten moved to San Francisco where in 2021 she was involved in a DUI and found with a blood alcohol content level of .22%, which is almost three times the California legal limit of 0.08%. In 2023, the DA’s office says she assaulted her 71-year-old roommate with a “billy club,” causing great bodily injury.

Batten was then referred to Parole Revocation Court, where she was placed back into the custody of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for her propensity for violence, her inability to control her anger, her lack of impulse control, and a substance abuse problem, prosecutors say.

On Thursday, via a virtual hearing, Tulare County District Attorney’s office said they successfully argued against parole suitability for Batten after violating her terms. She is currently incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla.

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