Murderer who went on the lam for 20 years pleads for parole

Porter insisted the omission was unintentional. He said he was sorry for the slayings of John "Jack" Pigott, 22, a clerk who was shot during a Sept. 29, 1960 robbery at a Saugus clothing store; and David Robinson Sr., 53, the Middlesex County jail master who was gunned down on Mother's Day 1961 when Porter and another inmate broke out of the East Cambridge jail. He was convicted of second-degree murder in both cases and sentenced to life in prison, with parole eligiblity in 15 years.

"I've tried for 50 years to make amends, I don't know what more I could do,'' said Porter, who has been treated for mouth cancer and suffers from asthma.

But board members said Porter disrespected his victims and the system by escaping years ago. In 1975, Governor Michael S. Dukakis commuted Porter's sentence for Robinson's slaying, but he remained imprisoned for Pigott's murder. In December 1985, Porter fled while being held at the Norfolk Pre-Release Center.

He remained a fugitive until Massachusetts authorities captured him in March 2005 in Chicago, living under the alias Jacob "J.J." Jameson. He had published a poetry book, was active in a church, and working as a handyman. He was sent back to prison and sentenced to an additional three years for the 1985 escape.

Board member Candace Kochin told Porter that he "lived a lie for 20 years'' while on the run and claimed he was an outstanding community member while there, yet reports indicate he was arrested for drunk driving and shoplifting.

"I hear you taking responsiblity for all the positive things you've done and glossing over all the negative things,'' Kochin said.

Prosecutors from Essex and Middlesex counties testified that Porter has tried to minimize his involvement in the two slayings and urged the board not to release him.

Porter claimed that an accomplice was the triggerman who shot Pigott in the back of the head with a sawed-off shotgun while ordering him and other employees of the Robert Hall Clothing store to hand over their wallets.

But today, Essex Assistant District Attorney Kenneth Bresler told the board that Porter confessed to Pigott's shooting, then blamed an accomplice years later after that man died.

Relatives and friends of Robinson and Pigott testified about how the slayings had shattered their lives.

Robinson's daughter, Joan Robinson, said the family was never given an opportunity to challenge the commutation of Porter's sentence for her father's slaying because they only learned of it five years ago. She said the family was shocked because even though another inmate shot her father, it was Porter who initiated the escape and smuggled the murder weapon into the jail.

"I am here seeking justice in honor of my father, a man of integrity who dedicated his life to law enforcement,'' Robinson said.

The board is expected to make a decision on Porter's parole request in six to eight weeks.