PORTLAND, Oregon — Diane Downs, the Oregon woman convicted of shooting her three children in 1983 — killing one and severely injuring the others — appeared before the state parole board this week to plead for her release after more than four decades behind bars.
Downs, 70, is serving a life sentence on top of 50 years for the crimes committed near Springfield. The Oregon Board of Parole now has 30 days to decide whether she will be released.
In May 1983, Downs, then a postal worker, drove her children — ages 8, 7 and 3 — to a rural road outside Springfield and did the unthinkable…