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In a decision released this week, a California parole board denied the release of Erik Menendez, who, after more than 30 years in prison, became eligible for parole for the first time. The three-person board found Erik, who was convicted of murdering his parents with his brother Lyle in 1989, still posed “an unreasonable risk to public safety.”

Erik’s nearly 10-hour hearing, held in late August, explored his rehabilitation in prison and record of conduct, as well as arguments for and against his release. Prosecutors from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office asked the board to deny parole, as did several family members, more than a dozen of whom spoke on his behalf. In the end, the board agreed with prosecutors, citing not just the nature of the crime and Erik’s teenage record but also what it said were “serious violations” of prison rules.

Erik, now in his 50s, will be eligible for parole in three years. Explaining his decision this week, Parole Commissioner Robert Barton said it was based not only on the murders of which Erik was convicted but also on his behavior since then.

“You can be dangerous to public safety in many ways, through many types of criminal activity, including the types you were found guilty of while in prison,” Barton told Erik, according to a transcript of the ruling. He encouraged Erik to make more use of his “great support network” to keep from violating prison rules again.

Erik, who has served nearly 31 years in prison, has nine rule violations on his record since he arrived, including drug possession and possession of a cell phone and lighter, both of which were contraband. He also has received a dishonorable good time credit award for “multiple, willful violations of rules, policies, and procedures.”

He has also had several correctional officers write letters on his behalf, some calling him a “model inmate.” But Barton asked if that was really an appropriate term for someone with Erik’s history. Erik, who at times during the hearing became emotional, replied that it was only in the last year that he had thought that his release was “even a possibility,” a realization that had led to changes in his “consequential thinking.”

Several family members, many of them in tears, testified on Erik’s behalf, saying the case had brought years of pain to the family but that they had come to forgive him. “To say our family has experienced pain does not quite capture what the last 35 years have been like,” Tiffani Lucero-Pastor, a great-niece of Kitty Menendez, one of the victims, told the parole board.

“It has divided us. It has caused us panic and anxiety.”

Others said Kitty’s failure to stop the abuse in the home may have contributed to the brothers’ own fear. Karen Mae Vandermolen-Copley, Kitty’s niece, told the board that her aunt’s “absence of protection deepened their fear and confusion.” The only family member whom the board said was known to be against parole was Kitty’s brother, Milton Andersen, who died earlier this year.

After the ruling, the family issued a statement that said they were disappointed but respected the board’s decision. “Our belief in Erik remains unwavering,” it said. “His remorse, growth, and the positive impact he’s had on others speak for themselves. We will continue to stand by him and hold to the hope he can return home soon.”

The brother to be paroled, or not, is next.

Erik was not the only Menendez brother up for parole this month. The elder brother, Lyle Menendez, will have his hearing on Friday, at which point a parole board will also decide whether his record and conduct behind bars merit release. Lyle has accrued slightly fewer disciplinary violations than Erik, but also, by most accounts, made more damaging statements about the killings.

Lyle took the stand during the original 1993 trial and, under questioning from his defense team, testified that he fired multiple shotgun blasts at close range at both his father and mother. Barton noted during this week’s hearing that he was told the manner of the death of his mother, who prosecutors said was shot in the face, was “devoid of human compassion.”

Lyle has also made several inconsistent statements over the years, which the prosecution has challenged, about alleged abuse by their father. At one point, according to prosecutors, he encouraged his then-girlfriend to falsely say his father had drugged and raped her. Such statements are certain to factor into Lyle’s parole hearing, as are letters of support from several family members who plan to also speak on his behalf.