Robert F Kennedy killer Sirhan Sirhan denied parole by California board

Different parole board voted two years ago to release him, but Governor Gavin Newson rejected the decision

In 2021, a California parole board decision to free Sirhan Sirhan was overturned by the governor Gavin Newsom. AP

A California panel on Wednesday denied parole for Robert F Kennedy assassin Sirhan Sirhan, saying the 78-year-old prisoner still lacks insight into what caused him to shoot the senator and presidential candidate in 1968.

Sirhan’s lawyer Angela Berry disputed that, saying Sirhan has shown that awareness, and his psychiatrists have said for decades that he is unlikely to reoffend or be a danger to society.

Two years ago, a different California parole board had agreed with Ms Berry, voting to release Sirhan, but Governor Gavin Newson rejected the decision in 2022.

Ms Berry said she believes the new board members on Wednesday were influenced by Mr Newsom and by the lawyers representing Mr Kennedy's widow and some of his children — several relatives of the murdered politician are opposed to Sirhan's release, though not all are.

In rejecting Sirhan’s freedom last year, the governor said the prisoner remains a threat to the public and has not taken responsibility for a crime that changed American history.

“I do feel the board bent to the political whim of the governor,” Ms Berry said after the hearing at a federal prison in San Diego County.

The parole board hearing comes nearly six months after Ms Berry asked a Los Angeles County judge to reverse Mr Newsom's denial. The case is ongoing, and Ms Berry said it was unclear how Wednesday's denial by the board will affect it.

“They found him suitable for release last time and nothing has changed,” Ms Berry said. “He's continued to show great behaviour.”

In a three and a half-minute message played during a news conference held by Ms Berry in September, Sirhan said he feels remorse every day for his actions. It was the first time Sirhan’s voice had been heard publicly since a televised parole hearing in 2011, before California barred audio or visual recordings of such proceedings.

“To transform this weight into something positive, I have dedicated my life to self-improvement, the mentoring of others in prison on how to live a peaceful life that revolves around non-violence,” he said.

“By doing this, I ensure that no other person is victimised by my actions again and hopefully make an impact on others to follow.”

Sirhan shot Mr Kennedy moments after the US senator from New York claimed victory in California’s pivotal Democratic presidential primary in 1968. He wounded five others during the shooting at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

Notable members of the Kennedy family — in pictures

Members of the Kennedy family pose for a photo circa 1948 in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts. From left, John, Jean, Rose, Joseph Sr, Patricia, Robert, Eunice and in the foreground Edward. AP

Joseph Patrick Kennedy, wife Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy and their five children pose in the garden of the US embassy in London in 1937. Getty Images

John F Kennedy and wife Jacqueline take a ride on their sailboat in Hyannis Port. AP

President-elect John F Kennedy, centre, is surrounded by family members. AP

John F Kennedy, right, and Richard Nixon appear in the fourth and final presidential debate in New York. The 1960 presidential election offered the country's first televised debates. AP

Former US president Dwight Eisenhower shakes hands with Jacqueline Kennedy as she and president-elect John F Kennedy arrive at the North Portico of the White House on inauguration day, January 20, 1961. AP

President John F Kennedy and British prime minister at the time Harold Macmillan stand in the West Wing Colonnade of the White House in 1961. AFP

Jackie Kennedy boards a plane with her sister, Lee Radziwill. Getty Images

Edward Kennedy at the White House in 1962, flanked by his brothers Robert and John. AP

Jackie Kennedy leads her daughter Caroline's pony, Macaroni, while giving gives a tour of the White House grounds to Empress Farah Pahlavi of Iran in 1962. AP

The Kennedy children play in the Oval Office at White House. AFP

Deputy administrator of Nasa Robert Seamans and Wernher von Braun with John F Kennedy in November 1963. Nasa / AP

Jackie Kennedy with her children during the funeral of her husband on November 25, 1963. AP

Eunice Kennedy cheers on a young athlete during the Special Olympics, started by the Kennedy family. Getty Images

Joe Biden when he was in the Senate with Edward Kennedy in 1987. AP

Joe Biden talks to then-president Bill Clinton's Supreme Court nominee Stephen Breyer, as Edward Kennedy looks on. AP

John F Kennedy Jr answering journalists questions soon after his mother Jackie Kennedy's death in New York. AFP

John F Kennedy Jr and his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy arrive at the White House for a state dinner in 1998. Both died in a plane crash in 1999. AFP

A woman adds a candle to a makeshift memorial during a candlelight vigil for Edward Kennedy in Washington. Getty Images / AFP

Former US representative Joseph Kennedy II speaking at the John F Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston in 2009. AP

The Kennedy brothers, from left, John, Robert and Edward. AP

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, seen here at Viking Press, became a book editor. Photo: Corbis

Caroline Kennedy, the sole surviving child of president John F Kennedy, is the current US ambassador to Australia and previously served as ambassador to Japan under president Barack Obama. Getty Images / AFP

John F Kennedy, right, Robert F Kennedy, second from right, and Patricia Kennedy, front left, pose with friends in Palm Beach in 1936. AP

Eunice Kennedy Shriver with her husband, Robert Sargent Shriver. Photo: WireImage

Wearing a gown by Christian Dior, Eunice Kennedy marries Robert Sargent Shriver in 1957. Getty Images

Maria Shriver and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2007. Ms Shriver is the daughter of Eunice Kennedy Shriver. AP

President Sheikh Mohamed, who was Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi at the time, greets Maria Shriver. Photo: Ministry of the Presidential Court

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver have three children: Christina, Patrick and Katherine. AP

Maria Shriver speaks during the Women's March in Los Angeles in 2021. AFP

Robert F Kennedy addresses campaign workers moments before being shot in Los Angeles in 1968, his wife Ethel at his side. AP

Barack Obama presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Ethel Kennedy, widow of Robert F Kennedy, in 2014. Reuters

The Kennedy Family at Hyannis Port in 1931. From left, Robert, John, Eunice, Jean, Joseph Senior, Rose, Patricia, Kathleen, Joseph Jr and Rosemary. The dog in the foreground is Buddy. Photo: John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum

Katherine Schwarzenegger, daughter of Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger, is married to US actor Chris Pratt. AP

Robert F Kennedy's daughter Kerry Kennedy in 2021. She was previously married to former New York governor Andrew Cuomo. AFP

Robert F Kennedy Jr speaks at the Defeat the Mandates rally in Washington, protesting against the Covid-19 vaccine. EPA

US actress Cheryl Hines is married to Robert F Kennedy Jr. AFP

Cheryl Hines condemned her husband's remarks comparing the Covid vaccine and mask mandates to the Holocaust. Getty

Arnold Schwarzenegger and daughter Christina Schwarzenegger. Photo: US Special Olympics

Sirhan was originally sentenced to death, but the sentence was commuted to life when the California Supreme Court briefly outlawed capital punishment in 1972.

He was denied parole 15 times until 2021, when the board recommended his release.

Sirhan’s younger brother, Munir Sirhan, has said his brother can live with him in Pasadena, California, if he is paroled. Sirhan has waived his right to fight deportation to his native Jordan.

Ms Berry filed a 53-page writ of habeas corpus asking the judge to rule that Mr Newsom violated state law, which holds that inmates should be paroled unless they pose a current unreasonable public safety risk.

Recent California laws also required the parole panel to consider that Sirhan committed the offence at a young age — 24 — and that he is now an older prisoner.

She is challenging the governor’s reversal as an “abuse of discretion”, a denial of Sirhan’s constitutional right to due process and as a breach of California law. She also alleges that Mr Newsom misstated the facts in his decision.

Mr Newsom’s office declined to comment.

The California governor overruled two parole commissioners who had found that Sirhan no longer was a risk. Among other factors, Mr Newsom said the Christian Palestinian who immigrated from Jordan has failed to disclaim violence committed in his name, adding to the risk that he could incite political unrest.

The ruling split Mr Kennedy's family, with his widow, Ethel Kennedy, and several of his nine surviving children opposing his parole.

Sirhan's 17th parole hearing is scheduled to be held in three years.