Robert F. Kennedy’s killer faces parole board today. The L.A. D.A. will not oppose his release

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After his election on a promise to reimagine the criminal justice system late last year, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón enacted a sweeping slate of reforms, including a blanket ban on prosecutors attending parole hearings to fight against the release of previously convicted defendants.

While the policy has been in effect for nearly nine months, it has attracted new scrutiny this week as it could impact the release of a man convicted of executing a member of the nation’s most famous political family.

Sirhan, who is being held at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, was scheduled to appear at 8:30 a.m. If the parole board grants his release Friday, it will spark a 90-day review period by parole staff. After that, Gov. Gavin Newsom — or whoever replaces him in next month’s recall election — could still decide to block Sirhan’s release.

Sirhan, then a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant who had written a manifesto calling for Kennedy’s death, shot the senator outside the since-demolished Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles in 1968. Kennedy was considered a leading candidate for president and had just won primaries in South Dakota and California at the time of his assassination.

Sirhan admitted to the killing in 1969 and has been in prison for 53 years.

Angela Berry, Sirhan’s attorney, says the 77-year-old has not been accused of a serious violation of prison rules since 1972 and that prison officials have deemed him a low risk for violence. Sirhan first became eligible for parole in 1972. Between 1983 and 2006, he was granted parole hearings every one to two years, but always denied. Beginning in 2006, those hearings were held just twice a decade. He was last denied release in 2016.

Gascón has said it should be up to the parole board to determine an inmate’s suitability for release, rather than prosecutors who are simply relitigating the facts of old cases, sometimes decades later.

“The role of a prosecutor and their access to information ends at sentencing. The parole board however has all the pertinent facts and evaluations at their disposal, including how someone has conducted themselves over the last few decades in prison,” Alex Bastian, a special adviser to Gascón, said in a statement. “The parole board’s sole purpose is to objectively determine whether someone is suitable for release. If someone is the same person that committed an atrocious crime, that person will correctly not be found suitable for release.”

Critics of Gascón have said the parole policy is indicative of a broader abandonment of victims under his administration.

Some victims have complained to The Times that they felt helpless without an advocate present when they went to oppose the release of a loved one’s killer earlier this year. L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, a staunch opponent of Gascón, has also said he would send staff to aid victims at parole hearings if Gascón wouldn’t send prosecutors, but he has yet to explain how often he’s done so or what impact, if any, the move has had in such cases.

“Because of George Gascón, we won’t send a prosecutor to the parole hearing to oppose [Sirhan’s] release, advocate for public safety, or fight for the victim. Gascón calls this justice reform,” said L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. Jonathan Hatami, a leading proponent of the effort to recall Gascón.

While critics of Gascón have claimed the parole policy will end with a flood of violent criminals returning to the streets, data suggest otherwise. Records show the state parole board only granted release in about 19% of all cases it heard from 2018 to 2020, and that does not factor in cases where Newsom later blocked an inmate’s release.

At least one member of the Kennedy family has expressed doubt about Sirhan’s guilt. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in 2018 that he had visited Sirhan in prison and has joined a chorus of voices who believe a second gunman shot his father.

“I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father,” Kennedy Jr. told the Washington Post. “My father was the chief law enforcement officer in this country. I think it would have disturbed him if somebody was put in jail for a crime they didn’t commit.”

Sirhan Sirhan will face a California parole board for the 16th time on Friday morning. But for the first time since he was convicted of killing Robert F. Kennedy, Sirhan’s release will face no opposition from local law enforcement. After his election on a promise to reimagine the criminal justice system late last year, Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. George Gascón enacted a sweeping slate of reforms, including a blanket ban on prosecutors attending parole hearings to fight against the release of previously convicted defendants. While the policy has been in effect for nearly nine months, it has attracted new scrutiny this week as it could impact the release of a man convicted of executing a member of the nation’s most famous political family. Sirhan, who is being held at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, was scheduled to appear at 8:30 a.m. If the parole board grants his release Friday, it will spark a 90-day review period by parole staff. After that, Gov. Gavin Newsom — or whoever replaces him in next month’s recall election — could still decide to block Sirhan’s release. Sirhan, then a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant who had written a manifesto calling for Kennedy’s death, shot the senator outside the since-demolished Ambassador Hotel on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles in 1968. Kennedy was considered a leading candidate for president and had just won primaries in South Dakota and California at the time of his assassination. Sirhan admitted to the killing in 1969 and has been in prison for 53 years. Angela Berry, Sirhan’s attorney, says the 77-year-old has not been accused of a serious violation of prison rules since 1972 and that prison officials have deemed him a low risk for violence. Sirhan first became eligible for parole in 1972. Between 1983 and 2006, he was granted parole hearings every one to two years, but always denied. Beginning in 2006, those hearings were held just twice a decade. He was last denied release in 2016. Gascón has said it should be up to the parole board to determine an inmate’s suitability for release, rather than prosecutors who are simply relitigating the facts of old cases, sometimes decades later. “The role of a prosecutor and their access to information ends at sentencing. The parole board however has all the pertinent facts and evaluations at their disposal, including how someone has conducted themselves over the last few decades in prison,” Alex Bastian, a special adviser to Gascón, said in a statement. “The parole board’s sole purpose is to objectively determine whether someone is suitable for release. If someone is the same person that committed an atrocious crime, that person will correctly not be found suitable for release.” Critics of Gascón have said the parole policy is indicative of a broader abandonment of victims under his administration. Some victims have complained to The Times that they felt helpless without an advocate present when they went to oppose the release of a loved one’s killer earlier this year. L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, a staunch opponent of Gascón, has also said he would send staff to aid victims at parole hearings if Gascón wouldn’t send prosecutors, but he has yet to explain how often he’s done so or what impact, if any, the move has had in such cases. “Because of George Gascón, we won’t send a prosecutor to the parole hearing to oppose [Sirhan’s] release, advocate for public safety, or fight for the victim. Gascón calls this justice reform,” said L.A. County Deputy Dist. Atty. Jonathan Hatami, a leading proponent of the effort to recall Gascón. While critics of Gascón have claimed the parole policy will end with a flood of violent criminals returning to the streets, data suggest otherwise. Records show the state parole board only granted release in about 19% of all cases it heard from 2018 to 2020, and that does not factor in cases where Newsom later blocked an inmate’s release. At least one member of the Kennedy family has expressed doubt about Sirhan’s guilt. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in 2018 that he had visited Sirhan in prison and has joined a chorus of voices who believe a second gunman shot his father. “I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father,” Kennedy Jr. told the Washington Post. “My father was the chief law enforcement officer in this country. I think it would have disturbed him if somebody was put in jail for a crime they didn’t commit.”

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