Parole panel denies release for Robert Wilkins, citing plea agreement and victims' objections

The Committee on Parole denied parole Wednesday for Robert Wilkins, who is serving concurrent sentences that total a 52-year term for manslaughter and possession convictions. The five-member panel — chaired by Cheryl Renata — voted to deny Wilkins’ parole application after hearing testimony from the victim’s family and the Calcasieu Parish district attorney’s office.

The panel said the plea agreement and the harm to the victim’s family weighed heavily in its decision. Chair Cheryl Renata said she was impressed by Wilkins’ record in custody but that “20 years is not…sufficient based on the agreement you made with the victims and the state of Louisiana,” and announced her vote to deny parole. The other four members—Chuckie Tillis, Carolyn Stapleton, Jerry Ladoux and Pete Freeman—each recorded votes to deny, producing a 5-0 result.

Wilkins, 48, told the panel he has been sober for more than 10 years, has taken victim-impact programming and has worked as a maintenance plumber and trustee while incarcerated. Warden Steven Borden described Wilkins’ institutional record as free of disciplinary reports and said staff would try to enroll him in remaining programming, including a living-in-balance phase 2 course.

Members of the Fontenot family spoke in opposition. Harry Fontenot, who identified himself as the victim’s brother, said the family had agreed to a plea that avoided a retrial and gave Wilkins a plea-based 52-year term; he told the panel he would consider the plea contract void if Wilkins did not serve the intended term. Julia Fontenot, the victim’s mother, said Wilkins “assassinated my son” and pleaded with the board not to grant parole. Assistant District Attorney Jacob Johnson summarized the history: Wilkins pleaded to manslaughter (40 years) plus two distribution convictions (12 and 12 years), and the parties’ expectation at sentencing was that the defendant serve the entirety of the term with the Department of Corrections.

Renata and other panel members noted the legal limits on imposing a flat term for a first-felony offender and acknowledged appellate rulings referenced in the record but said those procedural points did not alter the panel’s weighing of the plea agreement and family impact. Renata also recommended that Wilkins complete remaining recommended programming if he seeks future parole consideration.

The panel concluded the hearing by denying parole. The board signed off at 9:31 a.m. at the Raymond Laborde Correctional Center.