A Massachusetts woman has been granted parole with conditions after murdering a Plymouth County couple.
According to the Massachusetts Parole Board, on December 3rd, 1992, 40-year-old Katherine McGlincy robbed and murdered Eero Helin, age 72, and Lillian Helin, age 65, in the couple’s home in Pembroke. The bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Helin were discovered on December 10, 1992.
McGlincy had a long history of substance abuse and criminal activity. She was smoking crack cocaine at the house she shared with her father on the day of the murders. In order to buy more drugs, McGlincy decided to rob an elderly couple who lived nearby. Armed with a handgun, she knocked on the Helin’s door and was allowed in by Mrs. Helin. Displaying the gun, McGlincy demanded money. Mrs. Helin gathered money from various places in the house and turned it over to McGlincy. She then forced Mrs. Helin to lie face down on the floor and fatally shot her three times in the back. McGlincy then went upstairs to Mr. Helin’s bedroom. Mr. Helin suffered from Parkinson’s disease and had limited mobility and strength. Mr. Helin died from suffocation. McGlincy has never provided a credible account of how she killed him.
The murders were not solved immediately, and McGlincy committed another violent crime six weeks later. While hitchhiking, she had been given a ride by Mark Walther. McGlincy shot him multiple times and then stole his car. Walther survived, and McGlincy was apprehended at a roadblock that day. A .22 caliber gun was recovered from McGlincy; ballistics analysis revealed it to be the weapon used to murder Mrs. Helin. When police interviewed McGlincy, she admitted to entering the Helin residence with a gun. However, she said that she had no memory of shooting Mrs. Helin. Although she remembered seeing Mr. Helin in bed, she had no memory of harming him.
On September 1, 1994, in Plymouth Superior court, McGlincy pleaded guilty to murder in the second-degree for the deaths of Eero and Lillian Helin. She was sentenced to two concurrent terms of life in prison with the possibility of parole. On that same date, McGlincy also pleaded guilty to unlawfully carrying a firearm and armed assault with intent to murder Mark Walther. She was sentenced to a concurrent term of 3 to 5 years in state prison and a consecutive term of 5 to 10 years in state prison to run from and after the life sentences, respectively.
After her last hearing, the Board expressed concerns regarding the now 74-year-old McGlincy’s re- entry plan and how to support her need areas including substance misuse and mental health. The Board finds McGlincy has come before the Board now with a comprehensive re-entry plan and presents with community supports for her needs. The Board considered the forensic evaluation of Dr. Galvin. The Board reviewed Ms. McGlincy’s institutional behavior over the past 34 years of incarceration. McGlincy reports that she has been clean for over 32 years and has been medication compliant for approximately 20 years. The Board finds that, with appropriate conditions, she meets the legal standard for parole. The Board concludes by unanimous decision that Katherine McGlincy has demonstrated a level of rehabilitation that would make her release compatible with the welfare of society. The Board considered testimony in opposition to parole from two of the victims’ family members, and Plymouth County Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Mello.
Parole has been granted to a Long-Term Residential Program which meets mental health and substance misuse needs.
Among the special conditions of parole include: Waive work for program; Must be home between 10 PM and 6 AM for 6 months but release for medical, legal, religious or work; Electronic monitoring for 6 months; Supervise for drugs, testing in accordance with Agency policy; Weekly toxicology for first 90 days & case conference at first sign of relapse; Supervise for liquor abstinence, Testing in accordance with Agency policy; Report to assigned MA Parole Office on day of release; No contact with victim’s family; No contact with victim(s); Must have mental health counseling for PTSD, Bi-Polar, Relapse Prevention; Long Term Residential Program.
