PHOENIX — A convicted murderer with multiple prior escapes from prison was out on parole when he absconded again, leading to a manhunt for the 64-year-old.
Daniel Cahill was convicted of killing Mary-Rita Yates in Tempe in 1979. Cahill was burglarizing Yates's home when she walked in on him. Cahill stabbed Yates, a mother of three.
At the time, Cahill was on the run after escaping a San Diego jail.
Cahill was convicted of Yates' murder and sentenced to life in prison.
"I was under the impression that he was going to be in jail for life," Yates's son, Greg Boncella said.
But instead of being in prison, when Cahill absconded on Feb. 14, he was on "community release," according to the Arizona Department of Corrections.
Cahill began serving his prison sentence in 1980. In 1991, Department of Corrections records show Cahill was charged with escaping. He had more than 130 behavioral citations in prison but was released on parole in 2013.
The Arizona Board of Executive Clemency allowed him to be released, but he was back in jail in under a month on a probation violation.
Cahill appeared before the board many times over the years. Only two of those hearings are posted on the Board's website, from 2018 and 2019. Both were denied.
However, according to a letter sent to the Board by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, Cahill had been granted "house arrest" in April of 2023. The letter, sent in December, raised continued objections to Cahill's release.
The letter cited Cahill's court record from the original murder trial, quoting the judge in the case as wishing the death penalty had been an option because Cahill "deserved" it. It also quotes the probation officer who prepared the sentencing report as calling Cahill a "remorseless person" and a "career criminal".
"He wasn't even a model prisoner," Boncella said. "And you're going to give this guy a chance?"
Cahill was caught Saturday after four days on the run. The Arizona Department of Corrections said Cahill would be sent back to prison for probation violations.
The Board of Executive Clemency did not immediately respond to 12News's request for comment.
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