The son of the man murdered by Susan Neill-Fraser told Tasmania's parole board he still missed his father and was sad his children would not remember their grandfather.
Neill-Fraser was sentenced to 23 years in prison for the murder of her partner Bob Chappell aboard their yacht, moored off the Hobart suburb of Sandy Bay, in 2009.
His body was never found.
Neill Fraser has long maintained her innocence, with supporters holding vigils and rallies in the years since she was imprisoned — but the court system has rejected her attempts to overturn her conviction.
After serving 13 years of her sentence, Neill-Fraser applied for and was granted parole earlier this year.
In its decision published on Thursday, Tasmania's parole board said Mr Chappell's murder was a "devastating blow for his children" and extended family, friends and colleagues.
"The burden of their grief has however been made more onerous by the ongoing media interest in his death and focus on [Neill-Fraser]."
His son, Tim, sent a letter to the Victim's Assistance Unit, which was considered by the board.
In it, he said he still missed his father "in many ways".
"[I'm] often saddened that my own children were too young to remember him," he said.
But the board said he recognised that Neill-Fraser did not pose "any risk of significance to the community".
The board also noted that the 68-year-old had "consistently and voraciously maintained her innocence" over the years.
"She presents as a well-spoken and educated lady of mature years and somewhat inconsistently with the common perception of a person who can, in a premeditated and calculated fashion, kill another," it said.
"She is, regardless of her denial of guilt, appearance and manner, a convicted murderer."
It said her ongoing denial of guilt meant she "presents without remorse and has not assisted authorities or Mr Chappell's family to locate his body".
The board went on to say that whilst serving her sentence, the 68-year-old had "engaged positively with her fellow inmates and the authorities, been as requiring minimum security and been productive in the prison gardens".
But she had breached prison regulations on two occasions — in November 2017, when she was found with unauthorised food and makeup, and in September 2021, when she spoke to a blogger.
"She breached prison security by releasing information of prison processes to a 'blogger' for publication in the context of describing what her usual day in prison was like," it said.
Bail conditions
Neill-Fraser was granted parole, in part, because of her lack of criminal history and good behaviour whilst in prison.
Her conditions include "electronic monitoring", "complying with a mental health plan", and "not contacting" a person whose name was not revealed.
But while she is no longer in prison, she will serve the next decade on parole.
"The crime for which the applicant has been convicted and in respect of which she is currently serving a sentence of imprisonment is grave," wrote the board.
"The taking of the life of another is repugnant to the standards by which we as a modern society live our lives."
