New ruling provides more protection for convicted teen killers

BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com) -- A recent set of state Supreme Court rulings has many victim's families fuming. Just over a year ago, the state's highest court outlawed mandatory life no parole sentences for teen killers. And now there's a new ruling that's giving convicted teen killers more protections, prompting families of the victims to fight back.

Sean Aylward, the brother of murder victim Beth Brodie, said the new ruling that teen killers originally sentenced to life no parole are now, not only eligible for parole, but also entitled to public defenders and experts paid by taxpayers at their parole hearings is a "slap in the face."

"The justice scale has been tipped and its against victims and it continues to tip in that same direction," he said.

In 1992, Aylward's sister, Brodie, was 15 when she was beaten to death by a 16-year-old named Richard Baldwin who can now petition for a parole hearing and get of out of prison. Already four teen killers, like Frederick Christian who was convicted of shooting two people to death in Brockton when he was 17, have been granted parole.

In February, Jose Tevenal who was convicted of killing a Lawrence cab driver in 1985 when he was 17, appeared before the parole board asking for his release. And dozens more are trying.

Next week, Aylward and some other victim's family members will meet at the State House with the head of the Senate Judiciary Committee and try to get some changes through.

"They're picking up the tab for everything. Where there is no such assistance for the victims. There's nobody coming to our aid with the exception of district attorneys to present our case for us," Aylward said.

Twenty-three years after Brodie's murder, Aylward is still fighting for his sister. It's a fight other heartbroken families, who have lost a loved one to a teen killer, are taking on. And Aylward says, he will not give up.

Cox Media Group