Murderer Shuns Parole Hearing

Convicted killer Maurice Seton Thompson waited three years to get another parole hearing at San Quentin State Prison. When it finally came Thursday, he decided not to show up.

The California Board of Prison Terms held his hearing without him and found him unsuitable for parole. But its members agreed to another hearing for Thompson a year from now instead of waiting the usual two years.

Thompson, 43, was sentenced to death nine years ago for the slaying of Michael Whalen, 34, at the La Habra home of Whalen’s fiancee, June Filice. Filice was shot three times in that incident but survived to identify Thompson as the attacker at his trial.

Thompson’s death sentence was thrown out by the state Supreme Court in 1980. It was one of the earliest controversial decisions by Chief Justice Rose Elizabeth Bird and her court and was cited by her critics when she and two colleagues were ousted by the voters last year.

The Bird court’s ruling on Thompson has left him eligible for periodic parole reviews since 1984.

Filice, now 50, flew from Los Angeles County to San Quentin on Thursday for Thompson’s hearing. Whalen’s mother, Ruth Kelly, 73, was also there. So was Orange County Deputy Dist. Atty. Anthony J. Rackauckas Jr., Thompson’s prosecutor. All of them had expected Thompson to be at the hearing. The parole panel members had expected him too. But when a prison guard went to Thompson’s cell to get him, Thompson wouldn’t come.

“He is playing games with us,” Filice said.

Prosecutor Rackauckas was disappointed with Thompson’s no-show. He had hoped for a two-year delay before Thompson’s next parole hearing. But parole Commissioner Edmund Y.S. Tong said the commissioners were not comfortable with such a lengthy delay without Thompson or an attorney present to discuss it.

“Does this mean we will have to come back here again next year?” asked Kelly, Whalen’s mother.

Commissioner Maureen A. O’Connell told her that was up to her.

“Mr. Thompson has rights, too,” O’Connell noted.

Kelly and Filice had not seen each other since Thompson’s last hearing in 1984. They held hands tightly throughout Thursday’s brief hearing.

O’Connell commended Thompson, in absentia, for maintaining a clean prison record the past three years. But the commissioner faulted him for refusing to get involved in rehabilitative programs.

“Mr. Thompson has refused to enroll in any self-help programs, such as individual or group therapy,” she said. “He has not taken part in any vocational training or increased his education in the last three years.

She also noted that Thompson continues to deny the crime despite strong evidence.

Thompson was arrested in an auto theft two weeks after Whalen and Filice were shot. Found in his possession was the same .357-caliber Magnum pistol that criminalists said was the gun used in the shooting. Filice has also identified Thompson in court.

Thanked for Making Trip

Deputy Commissioner Robert A. Roos thanked Filice and Kelly for making the trip.

“I wish more victims would come to these hearings,” Roos said.

Roos also quipped to them about a Thompson statement that he was framed by police.

“You were there; you know better, don’t you?” Roos said to Filice.

“You better believe it,” Filice said.

Later, Kelly and Filice walked arm in arm from the inner gate at San Quentin along a bayside walkway to its outer gate.

“Thompson thinks if he keeps failing to show we’ll get tired of coming,” Filice said.

“We’ve got news for him,” added Kelly, who drove with a daughter-in-law from Marysville more than two hours to get there. “We’ll be here next year and every year after that if we have to.”

Kelly has five other children, 17 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. “Michael was my baby,” she said, breaking into tears. “His birthday was last week. For his birthday, he got flowers on his grave.”

Prosecutor Rackauckas said Thompson’s failure to show was a poor decision on his part, if he hopes to be released some day.

“If I were him, I would want as many appearances before the parole board on my record as possible,” Rackauckas said. “Maybe he just woke up this morning and decided it wasn’t worth his time.”

He said someone from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office would return for Thompson’s next hearing, too.

“Our goal is to keep them (the Board of Prison Terms) from setting a parole date for him,” he said. “Our goal next year will be another two-year delay.”

‘Cold, Deliberate’ Killing

At Thursday’s hearing, O’Connell said that Thompson has a criminal record that dates back to age 14. She added that the Whalen killing was “callous, cold and deliberate.”

Thompson declined even to have a hearing last year. He signed a waiver then, and again Thursday, that he was “unsuitable” for release. Yet Thompson has maintained his innocence from the time he was first arrested.

The parole panel noted his denial but also noted that a scrap of paper found in Thompson’s possession while in prison read: “If I had someone to say they sold me the gun, I could beat the case.”