Paroled convicted killer of Rockland teen denied release following new groping accusation
Opposition to any controlled release of McCain from jail has been fierce because of McCain's past.
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Robert McCain, 64, and his attorney entered Friday's bail hearing at Westchester County Court hoping Judge Robert Prisco might cancel McCain's bail of $25,000 cash and release McCain while he fights his new charge of forcible touching.
A Cortlandt woman, known in court documents as "Jane Doe," is accusing McCain of groping her on July 4 at the town's dog park.
"He has no money, " McCain's attorney Robert Nachamie told Judge Prisco in his application for McCain to be released on his own recognizance, "so he can't go anywhere. He has no family."
Opposition to any controlled release of McCain from jail has been fierce because of McCain's past.
McCain and Richard LaBarbera were convicted in 1981 of murdering 16-year-old Paula Bohovesky with a block of pavement and a knife outside the Pearl River Library.
The state parole board released McCain in 2021.
State parole officers who have supervised McCain since his release told a parole judge Thursday McCain obeyed all the terms of his parole for four years.
Now, though, the state parole division is seeking to revoke McCain's parole, and send him to jail.
The alleged groping victim testified under oath Thursday at McCain's preliminary parole revocation hearing that
McCain invited her to sit on a bench with him at the dog park, put his arm around her and touched her beneath her sports bra.
She said she froze for a moment before running off with her dog.
Westchester Assistant District Attorney Mollie O'Rourke said Jane Doe's accusation, along with McCain's record, is enough to keep him in jail.
"Given the Murder 2 conviction and given the lifetime supervision, he's a candidate, Your Honor, to do harm to others," O'Rourke said. "His behavior is expected to be completely above board."
Nachamie said the case is weak because the alleged victim has had issues recounting the timeline of her story.
"I think there's just too many inconsistencies with her story," Nachamie said.
Judge Prisco indicated at a hearing last week that McCain's bail might be lowered or eliminated, but in the end, he did not release McCain, choosing to confirm the current bail.
Judge Prisco said the Division of Parole's recent decision to seek revocation of McCain's parole weighed heavily into his ruling to keep McCain's bail as it is.
McCain is due back in Cortlandt Justice Court on Monday and has a final parole revocation hearing on Sept. 24.
McCain continues to maintain his innocence and plans to go to trial.
