After 30 years in prison, Yolanda Saldivar has been denied parole

Selena Quintanilla's convicted killer, Yolanda Saldívar, was denied parole on Thursday, March 27, by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.

Saldívar was found guilty of first-degree murder and on Oct. 26, 1995, she was sentenced to life with possible parole after 30 years. According to Texas Department of Criminal Justice records, Saldívar could have been released on parole as early as March 30th of this year.

“After a thorough consideration of all available information, which included any confidential interviews conducted, it was the parole panel's determination to deny parole to Yolanda Saldivar and set her next parole review for March 2030,” said the Board of Pardons and Paroles in a statement.

On Mar. 31, 1995, Saldívar shot and killed Quintanilla Pérez at a Days Inn motel in Corpus Christi, Texas. The singer was just 23 years of age when she passed. Quintanilla was a cherished Tejano music legend. In 1986, she was honored as Female Vocalist of the Year at the Tejano Music Awards. She also received a Grammy in 1994 for Best Mexican American Album, and her hits like "Como La Flor" and "I Could Fall In Love" captured the hearts of both Spanish- and English-speaking fans. When the film “Selena” was released in 1997, it became a success as an entertaining retelling of  the singer’s life and career.

Saldívar has previously claimed that the killing of the singer was not intentional, including in last year’s Oxygen docuseries, “Selena & Yolanda: The Secrets Between Them.” In the three-part docuseries, Saldívar denied the allegations of embezzling money and instead claimed she was covering up Quintanilla Pérez's affair. However, she failed to present any supporting evidence.

The documentary sparked widespread criticism from the singer's fans, who were unwilling to listen to Saldívar's version of events.

Saldívar filed a petition for parole in January. The file included court documents and other materials, and it was sent to a three-person parole panel. A simple majority vote was needed to grant Saldívar parole.

"The reason provided by the panel for denial was the Nature of the Offense: The record indicates that the instant offense has elements of brutality, violence, assaultive behavior or conscious selection of victim’svulnerability,y indicating a conscious disregard for the lives, safety or property of others, such that the offender poses a continuing threat to public safety," the Board of Pardons and Paroles stated.

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