Relatives of a south-central Kansas woman who was killed in 1984 hope to block the parole of her husband, who was one of two men convicted in the strangulation.

The Winfield Daily Courier reports petitions have been placed at businesses throughout the city seeking signatures from people opposed to parole for William P. Kessinger.

Kessinger and Clifford Eugene Cox both pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the death of 22-year-old Cathryn Lynne Kessinger in May 1984.

According to testimony at the time, Kessinger offered Cox $1,000 to kill his wife. When Cox said he couldn’t do it alone, Kessinger held his wife’s hands behind her back while Cox put a rope around her neck and pulled.

Both men received life sentences. Kessinger will have a parole hearing next month.