He shot a man in the face during a robbery. He will remain imprisoned for now
A Modesto man who broke into a home and shot the resident in the face in 1997 will remain incarcerated for now.
Phinehas Lamont Parker, 47, was denied parole after a four-hour hearing inside Folsom State Prison last week.
On September 12, 1997, Parker and a co-defendant, both wearing ski masks and armed with handguns, broke into the Modesto home of Manuel Ruelas, demanded money and threatened to kill him and his wife, according to a press release from the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office.
After taking money and jewelry, Parker shot Ruelas in the face at close range.
Parker’s girlfriend and later wife, Clarissa Hurtado, pawned some of the stolen jewelery.
Police searched her home and found a pair of Parker’s boots with Ruelas’ blood on them, according to the release.
While in custody, Parker was recorded telling Hurtado during jail visits what to say when she testified about the jewelry.
Three different jury trials were started before Parker was convicted two years later.
Parker’s first jury trial was interrupted when he was recorded during another jail visit threatening to “choke out” his appointed attorney. After being assigned a new attorney, a second jury trial commenced but was stopped when his attorney became ill, according to the release.
At the conclusion of the third trial in April 1999, Parker was convicted of attempted murder and home invasion robbery, according to court records. He was sentenced to life in prison.
During the four-hour hearing on Feb. 22 Deputy District Attorney John Goold urged the parole board to deny Parker’s parole for five years, citing his misconduct while in custody, a psychological assessment that he would pose a moderate risk for violence if released into the community and his lack of candor when answering the board’s questions throughout the hearing, according to the release.
Parker has also repeatedly violated prison rules and failed to do anything towards self-improvement, has consistently denied his guilt and is a member of the “Crips” criminal street gang.
After deliberations, the two-member panel denied Parker parole for three years and urged him to take as many self-improvement classes as possible before his next hearing.
Because Parker was 25 at the time of the offense, he is eligible as a “youthful offender” to petition to accelerate his next parole hearing in as soon as eighteen months.
