Fahri, then 19, received a life sentence in 2009 with a minimum term of 14 years for the killing of 16-year-old schoolboy Jimmy Mizen. On 10 May 2008, in a south London bakery, Fahri threw an oven dish at Jimmy, which shattered and severed blood vessels in his neck. Witnesses reported seeing Fahri swaggering from the shop with a smile.
The California Board of Parole argued that the 57-year-old would "pose an unreasonable risk to public safety" if he were released. Commissioner Robert Barton said the main reason for this decision was not the severity of his parents' murders but his misbehavior in prison. Barton described Erik's repeated unauthorized use of cell phones as "selfish" and a sign that he doesn't believe that rules apply to him. The parole board brought up other violations, including an alleged prison-gang "tax scam" that Erik was connected to around 2013 and past physical altercations with other inmates in 1997 and 2011.