A third parole request from convicted killer Jerry Forsyth has been denied.

Forsyth, 67, must serve another five years on top of the 27 he has already served before he will again be eligible to apply for parole. He was sentenced to a total of 110 years in June 1986 after a jury found him guilty of murdering his wife, Karen (Kienas) Forsyth, at their Kalispell bowling alley in 1979 with the help of a friend.

Karen’s sister, Sharon Snell, was at Forsyth’s Friday morning parole hearing, reprising a role she has played for years. Snell personally has testified against the release of Forsyth at each of his parole hearings. She also has solicited letters and calls from the community supporting his continued incarceration.

Friday afternoon, an elated Snell shared the details of the hearing.

“Jerry spoke and just said he didn’t do it again, then they gave him a second opportunity to say that he was remorseful and that kind of thing, and he just didn’t show any remorse or anything else, so they just said, ‘We don’t think you’re ready for parole,’ and gave him five more years, thank goodness,” Snell said.

Snell previously has said she believes Forsyth should remain in prison until at least May 2039, serving roughly half of his original sentence.

She was not the only local resident to attend the hearing.

Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan was there and “he gave a nice little testimony and read a letter from Ted Lympus that Ted had written previously and, without reading any names, read a few other letters he’d been sent,” Snell said. 

Lympus is serving his 21st year as a district judge and was county attorney at the time of the murder.

Also in attendance was Ann German, Forsyth’s defense attorney during his third and final trial. The pair forged a relationship during the trial that has lasted throughout his incarceration.

“She was really busy trying to convince them that Libby, Montana, was really excited about having Jerry come back into the community,” Snell said. “I don’t think they probably are. Mostly, Ann was determined she was going to get him out and back to Libby so he could be working in her law office with her, and I thought, that’s not a good idea either.”

But as her trepidation now has turned to relief, Snell is ready to take a break from the concerns of protecting her family.

“It does weigh heavy on you,” she said. “You don’t think that it would, but even though it’s been that much time that’s gone by, it’s just nice to know he’s there and away from my family for another five years, so we can all rest easy and not be looking over our shoulders for him.”

Snell extended her thanks to everyone who made calls or wrote letters opposing Forsyth’s release.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at [email protected].