County Exec Wants Public's Help Keeping Murderer Out Of Rockland

ROCKLAND COUNTY, NY — County Executive Ed Day wants the public's help to keep pressure on the parole board in an effort to make certain convicted murderer Robert McCain "be barred from setting foot in Rockland County as a condition of his parole."

McCain was one of the killers of Pearl River teen Paula Bohovesky in 1980.

The teen had left the Pearl River Library where she worked after school, and was walking the two blocks to her home when McCain and his accomplice Richard LaBarbera saw her from a bar, followed, attacked her sexually and killed her.

They were convicted of Bohovesky's murder and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

Day tried and failed to persuade the parole board to deny McCain's parole earlier this year. Now, the Rockland County Executive is asking for the community to help keep the killer away from the people who were most damaged by his actions.

"Robert McCain does not deserve to walk free, and he most certainly should not be allowed to reenter and re-violate a community that he ripped apart with his heinous actions," Day wrote in the July 14, correspondence on Rockland County letterhead. "He can not be trusted or allowed to walk our streets again."

Day previously said he found it disturbing that a man who had expressed no remorse or taken responsibility for his crimes was given parole.

"Unfortunately, this is not the first time that the Parole Board has slapped the people of New York State and Rockland County in the face," Day said, referring not only to LaBarbera's release but also the infamous 1981 robbery of $1.6 million from a Brink's truck in which a guard and two police officers were killed.

SEE:

• Deadly Brinks Robbery Getaway Driver Pardoned
• Prosecutor Son Seeks Father's Release In Fatal Brink's Heist

On Thursday, Rockland County officials posted a copy of Day's letter to the parole board along with Robert McCain's Identification DIN - 81B1327 and the address and phone number of the New York State Board of Parole. Officials urged all Rockland residents to contact the parole board "on behalf of Paula's mother Lois."

Not all leaders in the community agree with Day's position on McCain's release. Ivanya Alpert, a member of Rockland United and a former trustee of Village of Piermont, issued a statement urging elected officials not to stand in the way of helping former prisoners to safely return to society.

“We mourn for all victims and survivors of crime and for their families, who deserve every resource they need to heal. The job of the Parole Board is to evaluate people’s readiness for release, not to re-sentence them beyond what the court decided for crimes committed decades ago," Alpert said. "We believe in redemption — not permanent punishment. As such, we call on lawmakers to expand rather than narrow pathways to parole release for people who are rehabilitated and reinvest the hundreds of millions of dollars in savings to prevent violence and support those who have been harmed.”