Two California men are on parole nearly 30 years after murdering a girl in a “satanic ritual.”
Royce Casey and Jacob Delashmutt, both 47, were released in August and July, while a third accomplice, 45-year-old Joseph Fiorella, has yet to be released, according to The Tribune in San Luis Obispo, California.
In 1995, when all three men were teenagers, they murdered 15-year-old Elyse Pahler in what they described as a “satanic ritual.”
The boys were in a heavy metal band and believed that “sacrificing a virgin to the devil” would make them better musicians, according to People, citing a habeas corpus petition filed by Casey.
The three lured Pahler, a friend who believed the group was going to a party, into a secluded grove.
Delashmutt, then 16, took off his belt and began strangling Pahler.
Then Casey, 17, pinned her down while 15-year-old Fiorella pulled out a large hunting knife, stabbing Pahler repeatedly in the neck.
Fiorella then handed the knife to Delashmutt, who stabbed her another four or five times in the neck, before Casey stabbed her an additional four times.
Pahler begged for her mother and Jesus.
Then, Casey dealt the final blow, stomping Pahler on the back of her neck, according to the Los Angeles Times.
They covered her body with leaves and went home, according to People.
Eight months later, Casey confessed the crime to a clergyman.
California grants parole to Satanic killers who ritually murdered 15-year-old ‘blonde, blue-eyed virgin’ | Thomas Stevenson, The Post Millenial
Jacob Delashmutt, 15 at the time, but now out on parole, admitted to being “most responsible” for the murder.
Two men who participated… pic.twitter.com/ikj71CsmGZ
— Owen Gregorian (@OwenGregorian) September 2, 2025
In 1997, Casey and Delashmutt were sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, while Fiorella was sentenced to 26 years to life.
“The crime is heinous and an exemplar of what shocks the conscience,” Casey’s attorney wrote in a 2021 habeas corpus petition. “It is gruesome and barbaric.”
Delashmutt was granted parole and released from prison on July 1, according to The Tribune.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom had denied his parole once before in 2023.
Newsom had also denied Casey’s parole once in 2021 and again in 2023.
“Mr. Casey must better understand the internal processes that led him to commit the crime and hone the skills he will need to manage them beyond the controlled environment of prison,” Newsom said in a letter sent to the District Attorney’s Office.
Only one of the three men, all teenagers when they were convicted in the gruesome murder, remains behind bars. Full Story: https://t.co/PixTNVGtIy pic.twitter.com/w4bBOh5bvA
— KTLA (@KTLA) September 2, 2025
Casey was up for parole again this year, only this time Newsom deferred the decision to the parole board, which granted it on July 23.
Casey was released from prison in August.
Fiorella will be up for parole in June 2026, according to People.
Dan Dow, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney, strongly opposed Casey and Delashmutt’s release.
“No amount of prison sentence would be enough to satisfy the debt that they owe to the family of Elyse Pahler and the community,” Dow told The Tribune.
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