OC Register, "Parole denied for 1977 O.C. killer"

Board denies parole bid after hearing from Lynette Duncan, the daughter and sister of murder victims, who faced her fears to confront one of the men who devastated her family 35 years ago.

Inmate Brett Matthew Paul Thomas, with his attorney Tracy Lum, minutes before the start of his parole hearing Tuesday at the R. J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego. A state parole board denied Thomas' bid for parole for five years. He is serving a life term in prison for a 1977 killing spree in Orange County. LARRY WELBORN, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

By LARRY WELBORN / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

SAN DIEGO – A graying, 53-year-old inmate sat silently in a blue prison uniform Tuesday as he was denied in his latest bid for parole from a life sentence for a murder spree in Orange County 35 years ago in which four people were shot and killed.

Brett Matthew Paul Thomas, who was 18 when the crimes were committed, listened without comment as a two-person parole board at the R.J. Donovan Correctional Facility found that he would pose a significant risk to others if released back into society. Thomas will next be eligible for parole in five years.

Lynette Duncan, 53, the daughter and sister of two of Thomas' victims, held her breath as the announcement was made Tuesday evening. She said she was relieved that one of the killers who wrecked her family three and a half decades ago will remain in prison, but Duncan added she had hoped Thomas would be denied eligibility for a longer period of time.

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