- Matt Hunsaker, son of Maurine Hunsaker, expressed frustration over a commutation hearing for Ralph Menzies.
- Menzies, convicted of Maurine Hunsaker's murder, seeks commutation citing a decline in his mental competency.
- Matt Hunsaker plans to attend the hearing virtually; his family, specifically his son, will be present in person.
SALT LAKE CITY — Nearly four decades after Maurine Hunsaker was kidnapped and murdered, her family is once again confronting the man convicted of the crime — Ralph Menzies — as he prepares for a commutation hearing that could potentially halt his scheduled execution.
Matt Hunsaker, Maurine's son, spoke with KSL-TV after meeting with the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole on Friday, expressing deep frustration and disbelief that the hearing is even happening.
"I literally have to fight and beg and convince these members that he does need to be executed for what he did to my mom," Hunsaker said.
A painful history revisited
Menzies was convicted of Maurine Hunsaker's brutal murder in 1986, shortly after being paroled by the same pardons board — though the members have since changed. That history continues to haunt the Hunsaker family.
"I'm not 100% confident in the board," Hunsaker said. "They paroled him in the '80s and while he was on parole he murdered my mom, so we're going back before the very board, not the same members, but the board of pardons that released him and that's how it happened — she was murdered while he was on parole."
This week, the board granted Menzies a commutation hearing after his attorneys argued that his mental competency had declined and requested an independent evaluation. Hunsaker believes this is a calculated move by Menzies, who he believes plays into the diagnosis to avoid the death penalty.
"We have spent 40 years to get to this point and thousands of hours in courtrooms, multiple lawyers, multiple judges, appeal after appeal after appeal and all those processes have brought us back to he is going to be executed," Hunsaker said. "And essentially now we're going to go before five members that can change all that on their own opinions."
Related:
Pardons board agrees to hold commutation hearing for death row inmate Menzies
The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will hold a hearing to determine if death row inmate Ralph Leroy Menzies' sentence should be changed to life in prison without parole.A crucial hearing ahead
Despite notifying the board that he would be out of town during the proposed hearing dates, Hunsaker said the hearing was scheduled anyway. He's never missed a major moment in the case and said this one may be the most critical yet.
"I'm hurting, it's a hard thing not to be able to be there for this, this is one of the most critical hearings and I'm not going to be able to be there," Hunsaker said.
The commutation hearing is scheduled for Aug. 7, 13, 14 and 15. Hunsaker plans to attend virtually and deliver his remarks at the end of the proceedings. His family, specifically his son, will be present in person to speak in support of the execution moving forward.
"They will talk for themselves, not for me, and I won't be talking for them, this will be for each their own to express their hurt and what they've lost and how it's affected their lives," Hunsaker said.
Execution date set
Ralph Menzies is currently scheduled to be executed by firing squad on Sept. 5. For Matt Hunsaker, that date represents long-awaited justice — and he's determined to ensure it isn't delayed or denied.
"It's really hard for us as a family to go before the board and fight and beg and convince these members that he does need to be executed for what he did to my mom," he said. "And I believe it's undermining the system. All the work we've had to do to get here is ultimately down to these five members that could just turn around and say he could have life in prison without the possibility of parole. To me, that is never a guarantee."
