'She never got to see 40': Spanberger's board paroles Fairfax killer as victim's family pleads

Gov. Abigail Spanberger's parole board has voted to release Troy Demar, convicted of second-degree murder in Fairfax County, according to the board's own September 2026 decisions report.

The board's September report lists Demar, 53, as granted discretionary parole, with a decision date of Sept. 10 and certification on Sept. 14. His only listed conviction is second-degree murder in Fairfax County Circuit Court, with a judgment dated Jan. 8, 1999, and a 40-year sentence with no time suspended. The report estimates he has served 28 years, 4 months and 22 days. The approved minutes say he was considered for both discretionary parole and geriatric conditional release.

WJLA 7News reported on Sept. 14 that, according to authorities in 1998, Christine Allen was found stabbed to death at the Fairfax County home she shared with Demar. Demar testified that he did not kill Allen, but the jury found him guilty of second-degree murder and recommended the maximum sentence, the station reported. A Washington Examiner opinion column published Sept. 24 noted that Allen's daughter was 3 months old at the time. At the hearing, Demar told the board, "I'm asking the parole board to see me as going on 54 years old compared to being 25. I'm not the same person," according to WJLA.

The rest of the record: No other convictions appear in Demar's September board record, and members cited "no previous felony convictions" and "no history of substance abuse." Members also said he had been infraction-free since incarceration.

Why the board says he should go free: The board's listed reasons included insight into the factors that drove the criminal behavior, improved coping and decision-making skills, reduced dynamic risk factors, demonstrated rehabilitation, a low risk-assessment score, emotional and behavioral stability, consistent adherence to rules, consistently positive staff reports, participation in correctional and vocational programs, educational advancement, faith-based or community programs, clear acceptance of responsibility, strong work-assignment performance, a stable release plan and excellent institutional adjustment. The board also concluded he had served enough time.

The Sept. 10 minutes record a 4-0 vote. Three immediate family members of the victim shared statements opposing parole, and Victim Services Coordinator Cindy Yadav read a statement from the victim's daughter. One sister told the board, "He should have to do 40 years because my sister never got to see 40," WJLA reported. A board member responded, "I recognize the strong opposition to Mr. Demar's release on parole, but he has done everything that he's required to do," and another said he had done "more programming than most of the inmates we see or read about," according to the station.

To be fair to the board, every reason quoted above comes from its own record, and the four members present explained their votes on the record at the Sept. 10 meeting. The question for voters is whether those reasons outweigh what the court ordered, what the record shows about his past, and what victims told the board.

What the numbers say about Fairfax County: Violent crime in Fairfax County has gotten worse over the past decade, according to the state's own figures. The Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services, using Virginia State Police data, reported 117.3 violent index crimes per 100,000 residents in Fairfax County in 2025, against 103.1 in 2016, up 14%. Property crime stood at 1,470.0 per 100,000 in 2025, up 9% from 1,351.0. For comparison, the statewide violent crime rate was 210.5 per 100,000 in 2025, and the median Virginia locality came in at 172.9, according to the August 2026 DCJS report. DCJS cautions that the figures are subject to revision.

This is what Democratic control of the parole board looks like. Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, appointed every one of the five members of the board, replacing the board she inherited, and the Democratic-led General Assembly confirmed them in Senate Joint Resolution 209 in March. Her chair, Shannon Dion, was previously named director of the Department of Criminal Justice Services by Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam. Board member Tyrone Nelson has run for the Henrico Board of Supervisors as a Democrat. The four members who voted on Sept. 10 were Dion, Vice Chair Kecia Brothers Hayes, Nelson and Valerie Boykin; Bishop Kevin White was absent, according to the minutes. None of that means the governor personally ordered any individual release; the board votes, and the record shows how each member voted. But the governor picks the board, and by law its members serve at the governor's pleasure. Statewide, a Washington Examiner analysis found Spanberger's board had a 13.89% release rate in 2026, more than 10 times the 1.23% rate under Youngkin's board in 2025, and WJLA 7News counted 48 grants in 205 discretionary and geriatric cases since May, about 23%; in September alone, the board granted 7 of 85 cases, about 8.2%.

Parole is not the end of a sentence. The board can revoke it, and in September it revoked parole in two cases. The board's report does not say when Demar will walk out or where he will live, questions Fairfax County residents are entitled to ask.

Email the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors:
Jeffrey C. McKay, chairman@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Kathy L. Smith, sully@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Rachna Sizemore Heizer, braddock@fairfaxcounty.gov,
James N. Bierman Jr., dranesville@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Rodney L. Lusk, franconia@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Walter L. Alcorn, huntermill@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Andres F. Jimenez, mason@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Daniel G. Storck, mtvernon@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Dalia A. Palchik, providence@fairfaxcounty.gov,
Pat Herrity, springfield@fairfaxcounty.gov,

Fairfax is an independent city in Northern Virginia.

Email the Fairfax City Board/Council:
Catherine Read, Catherine.Read@fairfaxva.gov,
Anthony Amos, Anthony.Amos@fairfaxva.gov,
Billy Bates, Billy.Bates@fairfaxva.gov,
Stacy Hall, Stacy.Hall@fairfaxva.gov,
Stacey Hardy-Chandler, Stacey.Hardy-Chandler@fairfaxva.gov,
Rachel McQuillen, Rachel.McQuillen@fairfaxva.gov,
Thomas Peterson, Tom.Peterson@fairfaxva.gov,

Fairfax County is a county in Northern Virginia. Its county seat is Fairfax, an independent city.