A man convicted in 1995 of shooting a 19-year-old in the face at a Medford park, then fatally stabbing him almost 80 times was granted parole.
Jeffrey Hardy will be released after serving 31 years of his life sentence in prison, after he serves six months in a lower security facility, according to a decision made by the Massachusetts Parole Board on Jan. 6. Hardy will have several conditions including a curfew, must remain abstinent of drugs and alcohol with testing and no contact with the victim’s family.
Hardy was 20 when he shot 19-year-old Thomas Moran in the face at a Medford park on March 28, 1994, then stabbed him to death 79 times. The two had been part of a group who played basketball that day, drank beer and smoked cannabis together at one of the men’s houses.
The cannabis — which Hardy had bought — was laced with another drug and Moran made fun of Hardy because the drug “was not strong,” according to the parole board. Moran told Hardy his drugs were “fake” and that he “got beat,” and called the men “chumps” and “idiots.”
Hardy left the gathering for about 15 minutes and returned with a gun. The group then went to a bar, the board said. Afterwards, they drove to a park and Hardy told everyone to get out of the car. He said a dealer was coming and instructed people where to stand.
Then, Hardy pointed the gun at Moran’s head and shot him. Moran exclaimed, “Hardy shot me in the mouth,” before Hardy jumped on him alongside two other men to stab him 79 times, the board said. Following Moran’s death, Hardy said, “Did you hear how many times we got him? 80 times.”
Though Hardy was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, laws in Massachusetts have changed. In January 2024, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in Commonwealth v. Mattis that sentencing people, ages 18 through 20 at the time of their offense, to life without the possibility of parole was unconstitutional and amounted to “cruel and unusual punishment.”
Massachusetts was the first state in the country to transform the law, experts said.
“Essentially, the brains of what we are calling ‘late adolescents’ or ‘emerging adults’ function very much like juveniles,” Northampton attorney Paul Rudof, one of the lawyers who successfully challenged life sentences for individuals aged 18 to 20, told The Republican.
There were 210 cases that fell into the Mattis decision across Massachusetts, including Hardy.
Besides Hardy’s age at the time of the crime, Board members considered his disciplinary history which also included violence. However, he has been disciplinary-report free for 15 years, sober for 29 and a doctor assessed him to be at low risk, the parole board said. Board members concluded his release would be “compatible with the welfare of society,” given the level of rehabilitation he demonstrated.
Two of Hardy’s family members and a friend testified in support, while Moran’s brother, sister, a state police detective, a member of the clergy and Middlesex County Assistant District Attorney Adrienne Lynch testified in opposition.
The court’s Mattis decision has been devastating for the families of those killed, as they are forced to relive the trauma, often going in front of the parole board and the incarcerated individual to make their own case.
Families have described the process as a “nightmare,” stating they feel betrayed and that the system is treating murderers as victims while their own pain is ignored. One family member during a previous hearing walked out, feeling as if his side wasn’t being fairly heard after the incarcerated individual was told they did a good job.
The parole board has so far granted freedom to more than 25 people, which is a significant majority of those who have had hearings and decisions released.
