California Murder Parolee Robs Sacramento Restaurant, Patron Shot, Car-jacked
New CA laws have violent criminals out on the streets
By Katy Grimes, February 28, 2019 12:25 pm
Four-term Democratic California Governor Gov. Jerry Brown made reforming California’s criminal justice sentencing guidelines a priority over his 16 total years as governor. Add to that his record number of 1,736 pardons and 284 prison commutations, and violent prison inmates have been released or made eligible for early release.
“This element of criminals incarcerated… a lot of them have been released into communities,” Hampton said. “New laws and the decriminalization of crimes is now reaping the benefits of what the State Legislature has done.”
So what is this guy, convicted of first degree murder, and extremely violent crimes against people, doing out on the street?
Gov. Jerry Brown granted 1,189 pardons and 152 commutations during his past eight years in office, more than any other governor in modern California history, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
NEWS RELEASE: Deputies arrest suspect after brazen restaurant robbery. The suspect has been identified as 57-year-old Jonathan Franklin of Roseville. His photo can be seen in our media release section on our website.
Posted by Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department on Wednesday, February 27, 2019
“California has implemented an alarming cocktail of criminal justice ‘reforms’ that are likely to lead to a major crime wave into 2016,” I wrote in the chapter on crime in Taxifornia 2016, by James Lacy
Proposition 47, titled The Safe Neighborhood and Schools Act, reduced a host of felonies to misdemeanors, including drug crimes, date rape, and all thefts under $950, even for repeat offenders who steal every day.
Proposition 57, titled Juvenile Criminal Proceedings and Sentencing, was billed to the public as criminal justice reform, allowing early release for “non-violent offenders,” but the initiative not only failed to define who qualified as a “non-violent offender,” numerous heinous crimes qualified as “non-violent” under Prop. 57.
Additionally, Gov. Jerry Brown’s A.B. 109 “realigned” California’s overcrowded prison system, shifting responsibility of repeat, newly classified “nonviolent” offenders from state prisons to county jails. Those released were assigned county probation officers rather than state parole officers. Many of those newly “non-violent” criminals let out of county jails due to overcrowding are living on California streets, on parkways, rivers, and canals, and using the streets as their toilets. Several large California cities have experienced deadly Hepatitis A outbreaks, inflicting thousands, and killing more than 40 people. And downtown Los Angeles has an outbreak of flea-borne typhus, on the rat-infested streets of homeless encampments. Typhus is a bacterial disease that infected fleas can spread to humans.
Hampton said Jonathan Franklin’s first degree murder conviction was not his first conviction.
“This guy spent his whole life in Los Angeles, but was released on parole to his wife in Roseville, in a Del Webb community.” said Hampton.
There is more unfolding in this story. California Globe will follow up.
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The respected Stanford University found that less than .01% of those convicted of murder and later released ever commit another felony of any kind–lower rate than the general population.The number of times they harm someone is even more rare. Of course, human nature and the media being what it is, when it does happen headlines scream making it seem as if it is a common occurrence.
That it happens at all is a problem, wouldn’t you agree?
And that is assuming one accepts the statistic you cited, which I’m not sure I do.
But one explanation for it could be that when young violent criminals receive reasonably long sentences and are then released as much older adults, they are less inclined, or more likely less ABLE, to commit further violent crimes.
There is also a concept that seems to be overlooked in your assertion: justice for victims and their families. Is that important to you?
For Common Good- you are so right. This author and article just adds to the fearmongering and DA agenda. The grant and then recidivism percentage is so low for people who were Lifers here in California. Its a shame for this type of news to help spread bad propaganda. There are many people who deserve a second chance and these situations just make it that much more difficult.
I couldn’t find your authoritative study. Mind sharing a link?
Here’s something worth poring over for a more generalized understanding recidivism https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/18upr9yfup0514.pdf
Good piece on Franklin. I posted it on our blog: http://www.crimeandconsequences.com
A lot of guys like him are getting early releases these days.
How are people even justifying this action? I pray they are never a victim of unnecessary violence from these unsafe early release laws. My husband lost two colleagues to early release criminals — so perhaps people need to feel that loss to understand the magnitude of this issue. I would never wish that pain on anyone but that is pretty much what people are doing who support this unsafe policy.
Of the two gang thugs who attacked and robbed me, one seemed less evil than the other. My wife and I supported his early release on probation. Sadly, years later he was back in prison for armed robbery. The more evil of the two made front page news not long ago for punching a Folsom Prison guard. My son-in-law assures me this awful person will not be treated gently at his new Pelican Bay home.