One of the three men convicted in a Tsawwassen double murder more than two decades ago has had his parole denial upheld.
Derik Lord, who is now in his 40s, was one of three teens convicted in the slayings of his friend's mother and grandmother in a murder-for-hire inheritance plot in 1990.
He was found guilty of first-degree murder in 1992 and sentenced to life in prison without a chance for parole for 10 years in the deaths of Sharon Huenemann and Doris Leatherbarrow.
As a young offender at the time of his conviction, no parole for 10 years was the maximum sentence the judge could hand down.
Throughout his trial and incarceration, Lord has maintained his innocence. Over the years, he has repeatedly been denied day and full parole, after his latest denial last spring, Lord launched an appeal, stating the parole board based its decision on erroneous and/or incomplete information, and that the decision was unreasonable.
In December, the board's appeal division assessed the decision and Lord's claims, but, in the end, affirmed the board's decision to deny day and full parole, as well as unescorted temporary absences. The parole board found that correctional staff is unable to properly address his risk factors due to his continued denial of the offence and, therefore, cannot support his release despite recognizing he has made improvements in recent years.
"As a result of your continued denial of responsibility for your particularly brutal and violent offence, you have been unable to properly address your risk factors," the board stated in its written decision last April.
In its decision, the appeal division found the original decision "to be based on sufficient relevant, reliable and persuasive information. Darren Huenemann, the mastermind behind the murders of his mother and grandmother, and coaccused David Muir both admitted their roles in the double slaying that rocked Tsawwassen.
Huenemann remains in prison while Muir served his 10-year sentence and has since been released from custody.
