Senate Republicans Rally Against Resurrection of Prisoner W/O Parole Early Release Bill

Senate Republicans joined together against the reintroduction of a bill to give early release to some prisoners serving life without parole, releasing a scathing analysis of the bill, marking it down as an extremely dangerous proposal.

Senate Bill 94, authored by Senator Dave Cortese (D-Los Gatos), would according to the analysis, “allow violent murderers sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole to petition the court for a new sentence with parole, if the individual has served at least 25 years and if their offense occurred before June 5, 1990. The individuals who are eligible for new sentencing under this bill are convicted of a “special circumstance murder,” a conviction that is reserved for violent criminals who commit murder in a particularly egregious manner such as torture, poison, lying in wait, rape by instrument, mayhem and other such offenses.

As noted by the Globe earlier this week when the bill was removed from the inactive file, Senator Cortese wrote the bill last year aiming to release elderly prisoners in the California prison system, especially if they have been proven to have rehabilitated after decades behind bars. He also argued that those after the age of 40 are less likely to commit violent acts and that violence at a young age and other factors should be in play when considering a parole for them.

SB 94 proved to be a divisive bill in Sacramento last year. Most Republican lawmakers and a few Democrats opposed the bill, but overwhelming Democratic support kept the bill rising through to Assembly subcommittees. However, support for the bill waned in August and September, leading lawmakers to shelve it in the inactive file in September 2023. For nearly a year, most in Sacramento thought that the bill was dead, especially because it came up against a slew of “tougher on crime” bills that were introduced earlier in the year.

However, on Monday, SB 94 was reactivated for an Assembly floor vote. The move caught many off guard, but also quickly reunited opposing groups and organizations once more. This included Senate GOP leadership, who released a 14 page analysis of the bill on Wednesday and showed just how dangerous the bill is.

“SB 94 could literally let hundreds of the most heinous murderers out of prison early, even if they were sentenced to life WITHOUT parole,” said Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones (R-San Diego) in a statement and reiterated on an Instagram reel on Wednesday. “This harsh punishment is reserved for the worst of the worst criminals. They’ve taken people’s lives away and are sentenced to spend the rest of theirs in prison.

“Last year, outrage from Californians effectively stopped this bill from moving forward. Now, Democrats are trying to sneak it through in the final weeks of session with supposed amendments. At this point, I don’t see any amendment that would warrant releasing these dangerous murderers. We are exposing the true evils of SB 94 today by publishing our internal Senate Republican analysis of the bill.”

Senator Kelly Seyarto (R-Murrieta) added, “The supermajority’s efforts to empty California’s prisons have become entirely too focused on the criminals and forget to consider the victims and their families. It is unacceptable for legislators to show this complete disregard for those who have suffered by re-litigating crimes that have already received a fair trial. This bill sends a terrible message and retraumatizes families of victims who were reassured that the criminals who have done unspeakable things to their loved ones would never be released.”

The analysis also served as one long comment against the bill. Arguments in opposition against the bill included:

• Shortening the sentence for individuals who committed some of the worst and most heinous murders in this state
• Mitigating factors that would favor resentencing are no longer bars against prisoners
• Negative postconviction disciplinary records and poor or non-existent rehabilitative efforts are not necessarily bars to the granting of a petition for resentencing
• Passing this bill makes it easier to steal the victims’ family members’ finality of justice and the proceedings that will take place will victimize the dead and their families all over again
• Multiple other issues with the bill that would make it easier for criminals to get released.

Capitol staffer “Dana” added that “The mood here is exactly what the Senate leaders put in their statement. That this was a last minute push to get this bill through without properly analyzing it. Public pressure killed it last year, but with only a few weeks, it may not be enough time this time.

“The saddest part was, well, guess who got to sort through e-mail the last few days? And guess who had to read stories of worry and heartbreak from victims families. California said they would be behind bars for life what they did, and now they could be on the street. It sounds both anxiety-inducing and terrifying. I can’t imagine what they are feeling right now.”

As of Wednesday, it is currently unknown when the vote on SB 94 will take place.