James Parker Granted Parole for Bizarre Robbery-Murder Plot at Age 16

James Parker, now nearly 40 years old, has been granted parole after spending his adult life behind bars for his involvement in a bizarre plot to rob two Dartmouth professors and move to Australia when he was just 16 years old. In January 2001, Parker and Robert Tulloch convinced Half Zantop and Susanne Zantop that they were conducting a survey on climate issues before stabbing them both to death in their New Hampshire home. The teenagers chose the couple’s house because it appeared expensive and was surrounded by trees as part of an ill-conceived plan to make random captives give up financial passwords before killing them, but they only managed to steal $340 from Half Zantop’s wallet.
Police initially suspected a crime of passion following the murder of the professors in 2001 due to reports that suggested an affair between one of the suspects and Professor Susanne Zantop which were later retracted by The Boston Globe. However, fingerprints on sheaths found at the scene along with a bloody boot print led them to Parker and Tulloch three weeks after the killings took place.
Parker told New Hampshire’s state parole board that his actions in 2001 were “unimaginably horrible” during an April hearing, stating: “We were attempting to move overseas and live some sort of life of adventure.” He added: “I know there’s not an amount of time or things I can do to change it or alleviate any pain I’ve caused. I am deeply sorry.”
At the time of their arrests, people who knew Parker and Tulloch were shocked by the killings as they described them both as “class clowns”. Casey Purcell, a senior from Chelsea High School said that James Parker “was just never really serious” while Rob was known for his wit.
Parker’s attorney Cathy Green highlighted her client’s disciplinary record during the hearing and noted that he earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees whilst in prison, painted artworks which are now on display at the facility, acted in jailhouse productions of plays, took up sports and helped to develop educational guidelines for fellow inmates. Green explained: “He has spent the past 24 years doing everything in his power to not only improve himself but better this particular institution he finds himself held inside”. She noted that after hearing about Susanne Zantop’s daughter Veronika’s disapproval regarding his original parole bid, her client no longer plans to comment on the matter “out of respect for the Zantop family.”
At Parker’s request, his attorney revealed: “This will likely be released within two or three months but subject that has absolutely captured an injustice and a travesty”. However, it is not clear whether this refers to the parole decision itself.
Parker was originally sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 25 years after he testified against Tulloch as part of his plea agreement; however, following a Supreme Court ruling in 2012 that deemed it unconstitutional for juveniles to be given mandatory sentences of life without parole, Parker appealed the sentence. He withdrew this petition in 2019 after learning about Veronika Zantop’s disapproval regarding his original bid for early release.
Tulloch was handed a compulsory penalty of life imprisonment without the chance to apply for parole following his conviction, but he is scheduled to have another sentencing hearing in June as part of an ongoing review into five other men who were given similar sentences after being found guilty by juries prior to the Supreme Court’s decision.
Susanne Zantop’s daughter Veronika expressed her thoughts on Parker’s parole release, saying: “I wish James Parker and his family the best, but I am deeply sad for everything they — and we — have missed out on.” She continued by explaining that she misses both of her parents who were killed in 2001. Her father Half was aged 62 at the time of their deaths whilst Susanne Zantop’s age has not been disclosed, but it is known that she was a respected professor and head of Dartmouth University’s German studies department when they died. Both were described as “beloved” by students and colleagues alike, with an open invitation to many of their friends’ homes before the tragic events unfolded in 2001.