‘TWISTED TWIN’ RELEASED AFTER SERVING JUST HALF HER SENTENCE — SHE AND HER SISTER KILLED THEIR MUM AS TEENAGERS

Tasmiyah Whitehead has walked free after 16 years behind bars for the 2010 killing of her mother, while her identical twin remains imprisoned

A woman once dubbed one of the “Twisted Twins” has been released from prison after serving just over half of the sentence handed down following the death of her mother.

Tasmiyah Whitehead, now 33, was released from Pulaski State Prison in Georgia on August 5, 2026, according to jail records cited by the New York Post.

She had spent 16 years behind bars, including time in pre-trial detention, after she and her identical twin sister, Jasmiyah Whitehead, were convicted in connection with the 2010 killing of their mother, Jarmecca “Nikki” Whitehead.

THE SISTERS WERE JUST 16

The sisters were only 16 years old when their mother died at the family home in Rockdale County.

According to investigators and court reports, a violent confrontation broke out after the twins had recently moved back in with their mother.

The sisters later told investigators that their mother had confronted them after they woke up late for school and that a physical struggle followed.

Tasmiyah admitted that she struck her mother with a cooking pot before using a knife during the confrontation.

Prosecutors said the twins then continued the assault before moving their mother’s body into a bathtub.

Police later described the home as an extremely disturbing crime scene.

THE CASE SHOCKED INVESTIGATORS

After Nikki’s death, the twins initially presented themselves as victims who had returned home from school.

Investigators eventually began questioning their account.

The sisters had injuries of their own, including bite marks and scratches, which they initially tried to explain away.

Police spent months building the case.

According to reports, investigators later placed recording equipment inside a vehicle and captured the sisters discussing the lack of evidence authorities had against them.

The twins were eventually arrested about four months after their mother’s death.

A 30-YEAR SENTENCE — THEN A PLEA DEAL

The sisters initially faced murder charges.

But in 2014, they accepted plea agreements that reduced the murder charges to voluntary manslaughter, along with charges involving possession of a knife during a crime and making false statements.

Tasmiyah’s sentence was structured as 20 years for voluntary manslaughter, five years for possession of a knife during a crime and another five years for false statements.

Although the total sentence was 30 years, she ultimately served 16 years, including her time before trial.

The sentence angered the twins’ grandmother, Lynda Whitehead, who publicly questioned whether the punishment was sufficient for the loss of her daughter.

WHY IS HER SISTER STILL IN PRISON?

Tasmiyah’s release has now created a striking divide between the two sisters.

While Tasmiyah is free, Jasmiyah remains behind bars and is not eligible for parole until May 2028, despite accepting the same plea agreement.

Tasmiyah had reportedly been eligible for parole as early as 2017, but remained incarcerated for several additional years before her eventual release.

The case continues to attract attention more than a decade after the sisters’ conviction — not only because of the disturbing circumstances surrounding Nikki Whitehead’s death, but because of the dramatically different timelines now facing her daughters.

Tasmiyah is free. Her twin sister remains in prison. And the 2010 case that shocked Georgia has entered a new chapter.