Crime & Safety
Man Convicted Of Killing State Trooper In Auburn Denied Parole
Massachusetts State Trooper George Hanna was killed during a 1983 traffic stop in Auburn.
AUBURN, MA — A man convicted of killing a Massachusetts state trooper during a 1983 traffic stop in Auburn has been denied parole.
Jose Anibal Colon, 63, will remain in prison after the Massachusetts Parole Board denied his request for release on Monday, according to the board’s June 22 decision. Colon was convicted of first-degree murder in the killing of Trooper George L. Hanna, who was shot on Feb. 26, 1983, after stopping a car on Route 20 in Auburn.
Colon was 20 at the time of the shooting. He became eligible for parole after the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in 2024 that life-without-parole sentences are unconstitutional for people who were 18, 19 or 20 when they committed their crimes, according to the court’s decision in Commonwealth v. Mattis.
The parole board found Colon had not demonstrated a level of rehabilitation that would make his release compatible with public welfare, according to its decision. The board also said Colon’s version of the killing lacked full accountability.
Gov. Maura Healey, who opposed Colon’s release, said Monday she was grateful the parole board denied the request, according to a statement from her office.
“More than four decades after Trooper George Hanna was brutally murdered while serving and protecting the people of Massachusetts, his loss continues to be felt by his family, fellow law enforcement officers and communities across our state,” Healey said in the statement.
Hanna was shot while searching three men during the Auburn traffic stop, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. He had served with the Massachusetts State Police for nine years and was survived by his wife and three children, according to the memorial page.
Colon will be eligible for parole review again in three years, according to the parole board decision.
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