BATON ROUGE ' The Louisiana Committee on Parole denied Derek Wilkes's request for early release July 23 but recorded a strong recommendation that he be moved to a facility that offers substance-abuse and domestic-violence programming.
Wilkes, who the panel identified as having charges that include illegal possession and carrying of a weapon, aggravated assault of a dating partner with a deadly weapon, and indecent behavior involving a 16-year-old, told the board he had no disciplinary write-ups and had completed anger-management classes at his facility. He has been incarcerated about two years, the hearing record shows.
Wilkes spoke to the panel about the incident that led to his arrest and said, "I told him that I had the gun on me, and, so they arrested me. Also with that, I'd had a text message with a 16 year old girl that was inappropriate, and I was wrong for that." He added that he had led prayer calls and described himself as "a model inmate."
Institutional staff at Riverbend Detention Center declined detailed comment on his day-to-day conduct but Lieutenant Janicki confirmed staff presence. Wilkes's mother, Cindy Wilts, urged release and described his military service and post-injury struggles with prescription painkillers, saying he is "a sober man who is sober today, who is a highly skilled barber who is ready to get back out" and that he is in contact daily with his daughter.
Committee members expressed concern about gaps in available programming at Wilkes's current facility and recommended transfer so he could complete substance-abuse, domestic-violence and related classes. Stapleton said she would deny parole today but would "recommend that you be moved to a facility that will offer you some... substance abuse counseling training" and domestic-violence programming; Chuck Tillis and Chairman Prater concurred. The vote to deny was recorded as unanimous at 9:43 a.m.
The board did not grant parole but flagged programming availability as a condition for future reconsideration and asked staff to explore transfer options to facilities that provide the recommended classes.