Disgraced sports journalist Jonah Keri sentenced to 21 months in prison last spring for repeatedly threatening, harassing and severely beating his pregnant ex-wife has failed to secure early release after serving a sixth of his sentence.
Posted yesterday at 4:51 p.m.
Barely four months after his incarceration, Jonah Keri was trying to obtain a preparatory release for parole. However, such a release is “premature”, determined the Quebec parole board on August 4.
“The Commission finds that you still have a strong tendency to justify your violence by poor management of your emotions and low self-esteem. […] The Commission did not perceive a significant level of questioning about your domestic violence dynamics,” the Commission concluded.
The violent acts committed by Jonah Keri towards his ex-wife in 2018 and 2019 are blood-curdling. ” [M. Keri] kicked his victim on the knees, hit him on the head and on the ears, pushed him, dragged him on the ground, slapped him, bit him, spat in his face, headbutted her, shook her, pulled her hair, took her by the shoulders, threatening to throw her from the balcony,” Judge Alexandre Dalmau listed in his judgment.
While he was giving his girlfriend a nightmare, the Montrealer was leading a “prolific” career as a sports journalist specializing in baseball. Known in the United States and the rest of Canada, Jonah Keri collaborated with major American sports channels.
The victim, Amy Kaufman, confided to The Press last May that she feared being killed by her executioner if she left him. “Your state of mind becomes that of a tortured person. You accept your fate. And there was the fear, too, that he would kill the baby. Let him kill my father, my brother: he had told me that he would do it, if I left…”
A few months behind bars do not seem to have allowed Jonah Keri to carry out any real introspection on his crimes. “You have difficulty explaining how control took hold in your relationship as a couple and why you used violence and threats to maintain a climate of fear”, underlines the Commission.
The commissioners also perceive “negatively” Jonah Keri’s desire to be released without being housed in a specialized resource. It was only after being confronted by his agent that the ex-journalist agreed to invest in a housing project with a program specializing in domestic violence, explains the Commission.