Legal News

Sirhan Sirhan, Who Murdered Robert Kennedy, Up for Parole in California

By Ashby Jones

A little blast from the past here for you, LBers.

Sirhan B. Sirhan, convicted of assassinating Robert F. Kennedy appeared before a parole board in California on Wednesday. It was the first time he’d been up for parole in nine years. Sirhan is currently serving a life sentence for the slaying.

According to reports from CNN and the LA Times, Sirhan’s appeal for parole is supported by two psychologists’ reports saying he no longer poses a threat to society, his attorney said.

Daniel Brown, an associate clinical professor in psychology at Harvard Medical School, has submitted a statement to the parole board after interviewing Sirhan for 60 hours over a three-year period, said Sirhan’s lawyer, William F. Pepper said.

“The report is part of a sealed file, but I can say that Sirhan does not have any violent tendency that should be regarded as a threat to the community,” Pepper said.

According to Pepper, Sirhan does not remember shooting Kennedy on the night of June 5, 1968.

That said, CNN reports that release of Sirhan, 66 is a long shot, with only about 10% of California’s life-sentenced convicts being granted parole, said Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney David Dahle, who added that he plans to oppose Sirhan’s release at Wednesday’s hearing.

“While Sirhan Sirhan’s statements at his parole hearing will likely be the source of continuing public interest due to the infamous nature of the crime, there is little he can say that is likely to sway the parole board and convince them that he deserves to be released from prison,” said Robert Mintz, a former federal prosecutor to CNN.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on March 02, 2011 (boomark / email).