They murdered their stepmother when they were 12 and 13. Now, they're finally getting out.

They were brought up in the United States prison system. Soon they will be freed.

The two siblings have been behind bars since they were 12 and 13.

At the time of their arrest, they were the youngest people in the US to be tried as adults in a murder case.

After being found guilty, they were sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Now, after 16 years behind bars, Catherine and Curtis Jones will finally be released.

In 1999, the brother and sister from Florida shot their father’s fiancee, Sonya Nicole Speights, after discovering the couple would be married.

What was originally written-off as a crime of jealousy was soon revealed to be far more complex.

The children were indeed hostile to the adults in their house. But perhaps this was because both children were sexually abused by a male family member who resided in their home.

On one occasion it was revealed the male relative came in to watch Catherine shower. He reportedly masturbated while she was crying in the bathtub, Florida Today reports.

The US Department of Family Services had attended the Jones’ home in previous months, on reports the children were being abused. Yet, nothing was done to help them.

It was after social services turned their backs on the children, that the idea of murder came about.

When Catherine revealed to her brother that she wanted to kill her abuser, her father and his fiancee, Curtis agreed to help. He, too, had been abused by the relative.

The pair took their father’s semi-automatic handgun, waited until dinner and shot Ms Speights — a 29-year-old with two daughters of her own.

Related content: Wake up America, you have a gun problem.

According to Catherine, her brother — who pulled the trigger — started having a panic attack. They fled to the nearby woods, where police later found them.

They were initially charged with first-degree murder, but later pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.

This charge landed them in prison for 18 years.

According to Business Insider, when 12-year-old Curtis was convicted, he asked if he was allowed to take his Nintendo to prison.

Now 29, Curtis is an ordained minister and is set to be freed within weeks.

Read more: You need to hear what Charlie Pickering has to say about Indigenous incarceration.

His sister Catherine will also be freed next month. During her sentence, a Navy sailor heard of her story and became Catherine’s pen pal. The pair fell in love and are now married.

Tragically, the pair have been incarcerated for most of their lives and have been sentenced to remain on probation for their remaining years.

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