Update January 14, 2022:
Governor Gavin Newsom of California has denied parole to Sirhan B. Sirhan. “Mr. Sirhan’s assassination of Senator Kennedy is among the most notorious crimes in American history,” the governor wrote in a statement. “After decades in prison, he has failed to address the deficiencies that led him to assassinate Senator Kennedy.”
Newsom continued, “Mr. Sirhan lacks the insight that would prevent him from making the same types of dangerous decisions he made in the past.”
Original August 28, 2021: Sirhan Sirhan, the man who was convicted of murdering Senator Robert F. Kennedy on June 6, 1968, was recommended for parole on Friday. The decision comes after two of Kennedy's children indicated they were in favor of Sirhan's release. "I'm overwhelmed just by being able to view Mr. Sirhan face-to-face," Douglas Kennedy said at the hearing, according to the Associated Press. "I think I've lived my life both in fear of him and his name in one way or another. And I am grateful today to see him as a human being worthy of compassion and love." Robert F Kennedy Jr. has spoken in favor of Sirhan's release for years, and wrote a letter favoring his parole, which was submitted during the hearing.
But six of their siblings are opposed to the ruling. “Our father’s death impacted us in our family in ways that can never adequately be articulated,” reads a statement issued by Joseph, Courtney, Kerry, Christopher, Maxwell, and Rory Kennedy.
“Sirhan Sirhan committed a crime against our nation and its people,” the Kennedys’ statement continued. “He took our father from our family and he took him from America.”
Over the next 120 days, the ruling will be reviewed by the board's staff. Then it will be sent to California's Governor Newsom, who can decide to grant it, reverse it, or modify it.
“We are in disbelief that this man would be recommended for release,” reads the statement from six Kennedy siblings. “We urge the Parole Board staff, the full Board, and ultimately, Governor Newsom, to reverse this initial recommendation. It is a recommendation we intend to challenge every step of the way, and we hope that those who also hold the memory of our father in their hearts will stand with us.”
Read the Kennedys' full statement here:
Sirhan was arrested at the scene of RFK's assassination in 1968. He was later convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death. In 1972, his sentence was reduced to life with possibility of parole, when California abolished the death penalty.
As the digital director for Town & Country, Caroline Hallemann covers culture, entertainment, and a range of other subjects
