![]() He launched a petition and a letter-writing campaign urging Brown to overturn the board’s decision. Mike Keller said he only found out about the parole hearing after it happened because a friend happened to look up Howard’s parole status online last year. He said at the time, the D.A.’s office notified families that they could register for CDCR’s victim notification system. Paul Eakins, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, declined to comment on the son’s claims. “We were under extreme duress at the time of the trial, so I blame ourselves for not looking a little bit more deeply (at the agreement),” he said. Mike Keller said he recalls prosecutors assuring him the plea deal would spare the family the pain of going through the rest of the trial, and that it was highly unlikely Howard would ever see freedom, even with a conviction on the lesser charge. “I don’t see how a reasonable jury could not have convicted him of first-degree murder based on the amount of preparation he did to commit the crime over weeks and months,” he said. Mike Keller said he now regrets signing the agreement, calling it “Swiss cheese,” and wishes the trial had gone on. He said they did not realize they had to register to be on the list.īut even if the siblings had been notified, the plea deal they and a few other relatives agreed to barred them from objecting to his release. In an interview, Keller’s son, Mike, said he and his sister, Julie Wilson, were unaware of the parole hearing because they were not on a victim notification list maintained by CDCR. She spoke in favor of Howard’s release, saying she forgave him, that he is a “good man” and that Keller had a role in her own death, according to transcripts. The only member of Keller’s family to attend the hearing was her sister, Pat Sparks. Jerry Brown did not overturn the decision. ![]() He said he also could not disclose the terms of Howard’s parole.Ī parole board concluded at a hearing in April 2018 that Howard had a good prison record, made significant strides and was suitable for release. He earned credits for good behavior and the 3 1/2 years he served in jail awaiting trial.ĬDCR spokesman Luis Patino did not disclose where exactly Howard was released, but said it was in Los Angeles County. Howard, 65, was released Thursday after 10 years and five months in state prison, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The high-profile case drew national media attention, and was featured on NBC’s “Dateline.” Photo by Brad Graverson 9-4-08īut detectives said Howard planned the murder, jealously stalking Keller and following her on dates while he was on the clock, bypassing security procedures at work to hide his whereabouts. She was a real estate agent in MB living in El Segundo. Howard’s ex-wife Julia “Deedee” Keller was murdered in 2004. The murder trial of Erwin Howard, far right, got under way Thursday with opening statements by deputy district atorney John Lewin, left.
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