Parole denied for child murderer

The state parole board has denied a request for parole from a man serving a life term for murdering a pair of Marion girls.

Flathead County Attorney Ed Corrigan said Wednesday afternoon that the Montana Board of Pardons and Parole denied 63-year-old Karl “Randy” Bachman’s request for parole 36 years after his incarceration began.

On July 31, 1973, Bachman took 9-year-old Jessica Westphal and 11-year-old Karen Tyler into the woods, where he shot each in the head six times. He was not caught until he molested and threatened to shoot a 19-year-old Glacier National Park employee in 1977.

Corrigan said Jessica’s brothers, Ben and Creed, testified at the hearing, as did Ben’s wife.

“They gave very emotional, powerful testimony about how this impacted them and their family and how it is still affecting their family,” Corrigan said.

Family members kept searching for her every day until the girls’ bodies were found three years after they disappeared.

Corrigan said Laurie Coburn, a childhood classmate of the victims, also testified about how the murders affected her and other classmates.

For his part, Corrigan presented an email statement from Janet Miller, the then-park employee whose identification of Bachman eventually led to his conviction on the murder charges.

“She gave a very strong and compelling argument as to why he should stay in prison for the rest of his life,” he said.

Corrigan also presented letters from 10 or 12 people, including former county attorneys Tom Esch and Ted Lympus (now a Flathead District Court judge).

“For that matter we’ve been receiving phone calls and email messages from the community opposing his release for the last several days,” he said.

He added that he was pleased by the result of the hearing.

“It went as it should have gone,” Corrigan said. “As I told the board, there are some crimes for which a person sentenced to life in prison should serve life in prison, and this is one of them.”

Corrigan said the case of Bachman was one of the worst he had ever seen in his 30-some years as a prosecutor.

“That son of a bitch is right where he belongs,” Corrigan said.

Bachman will again be eligible for parole in six years or sooner if ordered by the parole board.

Reporter Jesse Davis may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at jdavis@dailyinterlake.com.