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last month 42 year old eric smith was released from prison after being locked up for 28 years 48 hours has been
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following his case since 1993 when smith was then 13 years old and he killed four-year-old derrick roby in a
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fit of rage on this week's show jim axelrod looks at the controversial decision to let him go free
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we never forget our boy he was you know a wonderful child and we miss him terribly
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[Applause] i wouldn't wish this on anyone for almost three decades doreen and dale
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roby have lived with the anguish of that day in 1993. he says i love you mom and
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he went hopping off the sidewalk when they learned their adored little boy had been lured into the woods
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strangled and beaten with rocks if that wasn't horrific enough his killer was a red-headed freckle-faced child
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eric smith was tried as an adult all rise and convicted of murdering derek roby so
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you find the defendant guilty of murder in the second degree yes smith's sentence was nine years to life
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takes a young man in custody but it would also be a life sentence for the robies once smith became eligible for
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parole in 2002 they could decide that well now he's done his time and we're going to let him go
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every two years smith was back before the board and the robies would have to relive their son's murder and fight to
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make sure his killer's parole was denied it's not fair that we have to keep doing
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this the news the robies had been dreading came after eric smith's 11th appearance
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before the board when he was finally granted parole and as he told weny tv in 2009 he had
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big plans for his future i want to you know get married raise a family pursue the american dream
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about that talk john tunney who prosecuted smith's case says it's too early to know
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if that'll happen at the end of the day still a little bit of a gamble oh no no it's a huge gamble
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this parole decision is a high risk enterprise to be sure and jim joins us now in the studio jim
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we were saying how you know we remember this story as do millions of americans um
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now that eric smith is released where is he living that's first question well he's in queens new york uh about 200
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miles from savona he had wanted actually to go back to savona live with his mother the community was like no no way
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we're not having it can you imagine if you are the robies in your in the one store in town grocery store and look
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who's behind you in line so the parole board agreed with the community's protest very vocal sense of not
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happening so he's in queens do we know anything more about his plans now well you know he he hit the whole point of
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the parole process when it finally when he was finally granted parole was hey look i'm a change guy i'm a changed man
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um he says that he wants to go to college and counsel other bully children he even says he has a fiancee
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somebody who wrote him talking about criminal justice who that relationship uh continued so he says
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i'm a changed man and i want to help but again as john tony just said and as we get into
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tomorrow night on 48 hours that's the question that underpins the entire enterprise when you think about
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this is he can someone who did what he did be rehabilitated can they change yeah can
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they change so so the robys as you point out um in that tease video fought really
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really hard to keep eric smith behind bars he's now free how difficult has this decision been for them what are
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they saying now because they went every time that that parole board was meeting they were there front and center vlad i
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i got to tell you the the heroes if if we can use that word in a story that is obviously so tragic and
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heartbreaking are the robies they are remarkable people and one thing they said was look this has been draining for
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us every two years a letter would come at christmas time saying you have to he's about to be uh there's another
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hearing and then they would have to relive it um and and sort of argue again why he should stay imagine the upheaval
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so as they said to me and we'll get into tomorrow night there's this sense of look
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we want this guy to be punished obviously he he's given us a life sentence but in a way they're free
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they're free from having every two years to go to this parole hearing and represent their son
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in a way and so the fact that they're wrestling that kind of of positivity out of this most harrowing of circumstance
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is remarkably impressive yeah but wait just real quick i know we got to go but what what changed in the parole board's
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mind i mean for every every year that he was up there they denied him parole and
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then we'll get into this okay let me just say this the whole hour the undergirding the entire hour is this
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question what's the point of criminal justice system is it to punish or is it to rehabilitate tomorrow night ten
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o'clock nine eastern points i think that's the question many people ask themselves
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i think that is the question that many people ask themselves when the crime occurred yes when we saw this face of
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this little boy and we all started to ask ourselves like what is the point of what do we want the
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outcome to be with this horrific crime there you know there's there's no good answer really really looking forward to
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this one jim thank you very much appreciate it as always and you can see jim's report eric smith gambling on a
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killer on your local cbs station and paramount plus tomorrow at 10 pm eastern you can also stream it right here on cbs
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news wednesday night at eight eastern