(Picture provided to Boston Herald by Greenridge family)
As much as I love living here in Massachusetts, there are some stories which just make your blood boil.
From The Boston Herald:
Shocked family members of a slain 87-year-old woman, who was strangled to death during a break-in, were blindsided when they found out in the Herald that her murderer was granted parole.
Roxbury’s Maude Hinds was beat and strangled to death by Dionicio Delvalle in 1991. He was 19 at the time of the killing, and the first-degree murderer was sentenced to life without parole in 2005.
Hinds’ family members left that trial 21 years ago thinking Delvalle would never see the light of day, but a state court ruling two years ago gave him and other “emerging adult” killers a chance for parole.
George Greenidge, the great-nephew of Hines, told the Herald that family members had no idea about the parole eligibility for Delvalle. So when Greenidge saw the Herald’s article this week about Delvalle’s parole, he screamed.
“Oh my God! This lady looks just like my sister! Oh no! It’s my great-aunt!” Greenidge told the Herald as he recalled his live reaction to seeing the news.
“Wait, but he got life!” Greenidge added. “What are you talking about?… We all are in shock!”
As it turns out, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 2024 in Commonwealth v. Mattis that people convicted of crimes who were between the ages of 18-20 could not be sentenced to life in prison without parole because they were deemed as "emerging adults." By this logic does this mean that any person in Massachusetts who commits a felony between the ages of 18 to 20 is tried as an emerging adult as opposed to an adult?
Well, because of this ruling Delvalle was now eligible for parole and the family of Hinds was unaware of this change in circumstances until after the fact.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts claims that an exhaustive effort was conducted to contact members of Hind's family and that they achieved contact with "a direct descendant" concerning the decision and the parole hearing but did not hear back.
Given how little trouble it took for the Boston Herald to contact members of Hind's family, the state's claims don't pass the smell test. Under the circumstances, Hind's family ought to sue the Massachusetts Parole Board. The discovery process would determine the extent of their diligence or lack thereof.
Now it is entirely possible that Delvalle may have been paroled even if Hind's family was duly informed of his parole hearing, attended it and voiced their opposition to his release.
Regardless of the outcome, the Massachusetts Parole Board had an obligation to notify Hind's family and provide ample time for a response. Because of their negligence, the Hinds family is reliving the trauma of their matriarch's murder.
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