Son of Ex-College President Who'd Been Given Life without Parole Sentence for Murdering Man Is Granted Release By KC Baker

A former college president’s son who was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the shooting death of a 21-year-old in 1993 has been released from prison as a result of a court ruling.

On Oct. 7, the Massachusetts Parole Board voted unanimously to grant parole to Mark Van Winkle, 51, according to the board’s Record of Decision.

Van Winkle has been incarcerated in a Massachusetts state prison since 1994.

He was granted release to a halfway house after six months in a lower-security facility, the board ruled. 

Van Winkle is the son of the late Roger Van Winkle, who served as president of Massachusetts Bay Community College from 1983 to 1999, according to The Boston Globe.

Van Winkle was 20 when he was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1993 shooting death of Israel Espino, 21, and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He was also sentenced after being found guilty of armed robbery, armed assault with intent to rob and assault and battery.

The shooting took place on Oct. 5, 1993, when Van Winkle set up a fake drug deal with the intent of robbing Espino, as well as his brother, Frank Espino, 23, and Juan Guerra, 19, according to the board.

While driving to a remote location where Van Winkle told the three men he had a large quantity of marijuana to sell to them, Van Winkle shot Israel Espino in the head, killing him. 

Van Winkle then shot the other two men in the vehicle, wounding Frank Espino in the left shoulder and grazing Guerra in the head, face, and left arm, the board said. 

After regaining consciousness, Guerra drove for help and called police. Van Winkle was arrested.

He was expected to remain in prison for life. That changed in 2024, when the state Supreme Court ruled that defendants who were 18 to 20 years old when they committed crimes that led to life sentences without the possibility of parole could, in fact, seek parole and release from prison.

In its ruling, the board said that Van Winkle had made good use of his time in prison.

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“He has been engaged in rehabilitative programming,” it said. 

He has had no disciplinary reports in six years, and he has held trusted positions of employment at the Department of Correction.

Terms of his parole include electronic monitoring, attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, and avoiding any contact with Espino’s family.