After 27 years behind bars, Derik Lord has once again been denied parole.
One of three teenagers convicted in a grisly Tsawwassen double murder in 1990, Lord continues to insist he is innocent and remains incarcerated at the Matsqui Institution in Abbotsford.
Following a hearing on Sept. 10, the Parole Board of Canada denied Lord day parole.
Lord and David Muir were hired by Darren Huenemann to kill his mother and grandmother, Sharon Huenemann and Doris Leatherbarrow, in a murder-for-hire plot for an inheritance.
All three were convicted in 1992.
The three teens lived in Saanich at the time of the murder and at trial the prosecution argued that on Oct. 5, 1990, Huenemann and his girlfriend dropped Lord and Muir off at the ferry terminal.
The pair then went to Leatherbarrow's Tsawwassen home and, after being invited in for dinner by the two women, bludgeoned and stabbed them to death. The two teens then took the ferry home and were picked up by Huenemann and his girlfriend.
Lord, now 46, and Muir were both sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 10 years. Huenemann received a life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years
The parole board noted a psychological assessment two years ago found Lord to have low-to-moderate risk to reoffend and an assessment this year noted he continues to maintain his innocence, while confirming the 2017 assessment.
The board also noted it’s concerned with the level of harm that could occur if he were to reoffend.
“The board is not confident your risk is manageable in absence of documented reductions in your psychological risk rating,” the ruling stated.
Noting Lord’s continued lack of empathy for the victims and other factors, the board stated a release on day parole would constitute an undue risk to society.
After his conviction, Muir, who pleaded not guilty at trial, admitted his role in the murders and has been out on parole for over a decade. He was granted day parole in April 2002 and full parole a year later.
Huenemann two years ago appeared before the parole board at his Quebec prison for the first time where his parole request was denied.
