Inmate to be paroled for third time

South Island criminal Robert "Inch" Roulston, who is serving an indefinite period behind bars, is to be released on parole for the third time.

Roulston served 10 years for killing a man at point-blank range in 1975. While on life parole he was twice recalled to prison to serve out a life sentence, in 1990, after a conviction for attacking a man and in mid-1998, after being convicted on drug and assault charges.

Under the new Parole Act, the board can defer a parole hearing for up to three years. It used that provision this month for another killer, Paul David Bailey, who is serving a life sentence for rape and murder.