Sarah Kolb, who now goes by Shane Kolb, is serving a 53-year prison sentence at Logan Correctional Center in Illinois for the 2005 murder of 16-year-old classmate Adrianne Reynolds. She is in her mid-thirties. Illinois Department of Corrections records list her projected parole date as January 24, 2053, and her projected discharge date as January 26, 2056.1Illinois Department of Corrections. Inmate Status: Sarah A. Kolb
What She Was Convicted Of
On January 21, 2005, Kolb, then 16, and 17-year-old Cory Gregory strangled Reynolds with a belt inside a car in a Taco Bell parking lot in Moline, Illinois. Reynolds was a new student in the GED program at Black Hawk College’s Outreach Center in East Moline. Classmates told investigators that Kolb had grown furious over attention Reynolds was receiving from boys, and Kolb had written in her journal that day that she would “kill her.” Prosecutors identified jealousy as the central motive.2NBC News. Dateline: The Killing of Adrianne Reynolds
After the killing, Kolb and Gregory tried to burn the body at a farm in Mercer County, then enlisted a third classmate, Nathan Gaudet, to help dispose of the remains. Gregory led police to the remains on January 25.3ABC News. Teens Charged in Killing, Dismemberment of Classmate
How Her Sentence Adds Up to 53 Years
Kolb was charged with first-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death. She pleaded not guilty and went to trial in November 2005, testifying that Gregory had initiated the attack. The jury convicted her on both counts. Judge Gregory G. Chickris imposed 48 years for the murder and 5 years for concealment, run consecutively.4Illinois Appellate Court. People v. Kolb, 2023 IL App (3d) 200526-U
Her Appeals and Resentencing Bid
Kolb’s conviction was affirmed on direct appeal in 2008. She later tried a different route, arguing that her 53-year term amounted to an unconstitutional de facto life sentence for a juvenile offender under the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Miller v. Alabama and Illinois case law treating sentences over 40 years as life equivalents for minors.
In 2018, she filed a petition citing the five juvenile sentencing factors from the Illinois Supreme Court’s People v. Holman decision, arguing the original sentencing had not adequately weighed her youth and capacity for rehabilitation. The Rock Island County Circuit Court dismissed it. On March 1, 2023, the Illinois Third District Appellate Court affirmed that dismissal. The appellate court found that Judge Chickris had in fact considered her youth and lack of a criminal record, weighing them against what he called the “cold and callous” nature of the murder. Citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in Jones v. Mississippi, the court held that sentencing judges are not required to make a formal finding of “permanent incorrigibility” before imposing a lengthy sentence on a juvenile, so long as they had discretion and considered youth-related factors. The court rejected her state constitutional argument on procedural grounds, finding she had waited too long to raise it.5KWQC. Court Turns Down Request for Resentencing by Sarah Kolb4Illinois Appellate Court. People v. Kolb, 2023 IL App (3d) 200526-U
Her Clemency Petition
Kolb also sought executive clemency through the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. A hearing was scheduled for April 2022, but the board postponed it indefinitely, citing “unforeseen circumstances.” No outcome of a rescheduled hearing has been publicly reported.6WQAD. Illinois Clemency Hearings Halted
What Happened to Her Co-Defendants
Cory Gregory, who now goes by Harli Quinn, pleaded guilty and received 45 years. Gregory won a resentencing under the same juvenile sentencing precedents Kolb invoked, but in March 2022 Judge Peter Church reimposed the original 45-year term, saying the court was “duty bound” to uphold it.7KWQC. Cory Gregory Gets Same Sentence for Killing of Adrianne Reynolds In December 2024, the Illinois Appellate Court ordered a second resentencing, finding the trial court had failed to genuinely exercise its discretion. A new hearing was scheduled for June 10, 2026.8KWQC. Second Resentencing Ordered for Person Convicted in Death of Adrianne Reynolds
Nathan Gaudet, the third participant, pleaded guilty to concealment and served nearly four years in juvenile detention, being released in November 2008. In April 2012, at age 23, he was killed in a single-car crash in Monroe County, Indiana.9Herald-Times Online. Three Men Killed in Fiery Car Crash Identified