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Illinois' Longest-Serving Inmate Denied Parole Again

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The longest-serving inmate in the Illinois prison system must stay behind bars for at least another year, after he was again denied parole on Thursday.

Chester Weger, 75, came closer to gaining his freedom last year than he did this year. The Illinois Prisoner Review Board voted 7 to 7 last year. This time it voted 9-3 against parole.

Ken Tupy, general counsel for the board, said Weger has been incarcerated 54 years, longer than any other inmate in the state prison system.

Weger was called the Starved Rock Killer. He was convicted of murdering Lillian Oetting at Starved Rock State Park in 1960. He also allegedly killed Oetting's two companions, but was not tried for those murders after he was sentenced to life in prison.

Weger is serving his time at Pickneyville Correctional Center. He's up for parole again in a year.

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