KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A parole hearing was held for Jimmy Ray Cureton, who was found guilty of killing Bill Frye, Tuesday morning. Frye’s family has been fighting to keep Cureton behind bars.

At the conclusion of the Sept. 5 initial parole hearing for Cureton, Board Member Zane Duncan voted to decline parole due to the seriousness of the offense. The seven-member board independently reviewed Cureton’s parole case and reached a final decision to decline parole. Cureton will be eligible to have his parole case reviewed again in September 2025.

Previously, District Attorney Charme Allen sent a letter to the parole board asking them to deny Cureton’s parole. Fyre’s family also spoke with WATE about a petition set up by Dan Frye to keep Cureton behind bars.

“I am convinced if he has let go, he is not redeemed enough to be able to contribute anything back to society and he may re-offend again,” Dan Frye told WATE in August. “That is every family’s biggest fear is that someone else is going to suffer what they went through.”

Cureton was arrested in 1996 for the 1990 shooting of Bill Frye, who was killed outside of the Corner Market & Deli on Maryville Pike. Cureton was 17 years old at the time of the shooting. He was found guilty of attempted especially aggravated robbery and felony murder in 1998.