Serial Rapist Could Be Set Free

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By Mark Bellinger

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A serial rapist convicted in a string of attacks in the 1980s could soon be free. Police called Gary Wayne Garrett the Airport Rapist.

In 1986, a judge sentenced Garrett to 119 years for attacking several women, but in less than two weeks he comes up for parole.

One of Garrett's victims said she was attacked more than 24 years ago, but she's still scared.

"I still can't sleep in the dark when no one's at home. If I'm at home by myself I sit up until my husband or someone else comes,” said victim Amy.

She and the other victims were attacked between June and September 1985 in a neighborhood near the Nashville Airport.

Garrett used screwdrivers to break into their homes in the middle of the night. His victims said he held them at gunpoint.

"I had gone to sleep on my couch and was awakened by an unknown [man] directing me to my bedroom. He had a gun. [He told me to] keep my eyes covered telling me if I screamed or fought any I'd be dead,” said Amy.

Garrett got caught after a woman in the same neighborhood complained about a man peeking into her windows.

Police staked out the house and captured Garrett after they said he was trying to break in. During the arrest a police officer shot Garrett, and he spent several weeks in a hospital.

A year later a jury convicted Garrett of raping four women, attempting to rape a fifth and breaking into another woman's home.

The judge handed Garrett a 119 year sentence. Garrett would have to serve about 36 years before he would be eligible for parole.

His victim said she thought he'd never get out,

"We got the guilty verdict and later on they told us we'd probably be in our 80s before he was even eligible,” said Amy.

That's not the case. Tennessee prison sentences in 1985 included credits for good behavior and participation in rehabilitation programs. In 1985, inmates only had to serve 30 percent of their sentence for rape.

Tennessee Department of Corrections Deputy Commissioner Gayle Ray said the same crime is punished differently in 2009.

"Things have changed. In 1995 the statute was changed so that violent serious offenders served a minimum of 85 percent of their sentence,” said Ray.

Garrett has enough credits to be eligible for release in January, which is about 12 years sooner than many of his victims expected.

There's no guarantee the parole board will set Garrett free, but just the thought of the possibility scares his victim.

"[It's] sickening, but I also need to be strong enough that anything I can do to help keep him in there, whether it be facing him, a judge, whoever, the parole officers, whoever, then I'm going to be strong enough to do it,” said Amy.

Garrett is scheduled to go before the parole board on December 2. He is housed at the South Central Correctional Center in Wayne County.

email: mbellinger@newschannel5.com