A New York man held in prison since 1984 for the murder of a 21-year old woman who spurned his advances is about to be set free from prison, and the impending release has caused the victim’s sister to rethink her positions on guns and gun control.

The New York Post reports that Lisa Sharon has been begging the state parole board to keep Bruce Haims locked up, alleging that the man who killed Pamela Sharon still poses a threat to the public. Despite her pleas, the parole board recently voted to allow Haims to be released from custody by the end of May, and as a result Lisa Sharon says she’s been forced to re-evaluate her views on self-defense.

“I’ve always been a gun-control advocate. But if the state of New York refuses to protect me and my family from a vicious murderer, we’re left with no choice but to protect ourselves. I am therefore applying for a gun license,’’ said Lisa Sharon, the older sister of slay victim Pamela Sharon, to The Post.

“It’s the Wild West all over again.’’

The 61-year old convicted killer has been eligible for parole for more than a decade, but his parole was rejected at every hearing until the parole board accepted his request for release at a hearing in April. Lisa Sharon says she doesn’t believe the decades behind bars has changed Haim’s nature, and worries about the safety of the public if he’s released.

The Nassau County District Attorney’s Office and other officials have consistently joined the victim’s family in opposing freeing him.

Lisa Sharon said in her letter to the board that Haims — a former family neighbor who also worked with her sister — was nothing short of a “pathological liar” who had psychological disorders that made him “impulsive and violent.

“Haims has never been able to withstand rejection, especially by females. He snaps when someone rebuffs him in any way,” Lisa Sharon insisted to the panel.

“Outside of prison, without prison structure and without enforced medical management of his disorders, it’s almost a certainty that a casual rejection could precipitate an unforeseen danger, most likely for women.’’

I’m glad to see that Lisa Sharon is taking steps to protect herself with the release of her sister’s killer, but I hope that she goes further that simply exercising her own right to keep and bear arms. I’d love to see her become an advocate for gun ownership, instead of advocating for gun control. After all, if Sharon is concerned enough about Haims’ release to become a gun owner, surely she believes that other women would be safer if they too could protect themselves from guys like Haims with a gun of their own. Sharon has been a victim’s right advocate for decades, and I would encourage her to add Second Amendment advocacy to her resume as well. She has a powerful story to tell, even if the state’s parole board isn’t listening.