Senator Roger Niello (R-Fair Oaks), the Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC), Criminal Justice Legal Foundation (CJLF), victims’ advocates, victims’ families, prosecutors, and law enforcement leaders joined together today to condemn new state regulations that create a pathway toward release for certain prisoners serving long-term sentences, including life without the possibility of parole (LWOP). As the rules take effect today, the coalition is supporting the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation’s (CJLF) lawsuit challenging the California Board of Parole Hearings’ authority to establish the process.
“Cops knocked on these families' doors. We told them the worst news of their lives. We told them there'd be justice. I'm not going to stand by while that gets quietly undone,” said PORAC Vice President Ben Therriault. “Their loved ones can't speak today. So we will.”
The regulations establish a process to consider eligible prisoners after 25 years of continuous incarceration for recommendations to the Governor for commutation or to a sentencing court for recall and resentencing. They do not authorize the Board to release prisoners directly; further action by the Governor or a court would be required. The Board anticipates beginning reviews in July 2027 and hearings in July 2028.
CJLF, a Sacramento-based nonprofit public-interest law organization founded in 1982, uses litigation and policy research to protect public safety and victims’ rights. Its lawsuit argues that the Board exceeded its statutory authority by creating a new review system through administrative regulations. PORAC has joined the litigation, which seeks to block the rules.
“A change this consequential belongs before the Legislature and the people of California, with victims’ families heard and elected officials held accountable for their votes,” said Senator Roger Niello, Senate Republican Leader-elect. “The state should not use administrative regulations to undermine the finality families were promised when a court imposed life without parole.”
For Eric Carlson, the burden of repeated hearings has lasted decades. His brother Frank was murdered in San Francisco in 1974; Frank’s wife, Annette, survived rape, torture and an attempt to burn their home. After the killer’s death sentence was converted to life without parole, the family endured 17 parole hearings. An 18th is scheduled for April 2027.
“For victims, the original crime does not become a historical event simply because decades have passed,” Carlson said. “Birthdays, anniversaries, family milestones, photographs, and ordinary moments continue to carry the absence of a murdered or permanently injured loved one.”
California Association of Highway Patrolmen President Jake Johnson spoke about the families of murdered CHP officers Tom Steiner and Earl Scott, describing the lasting cost of losing an officer and the anguish of facing renewed release proceedings.
“When that worst day comes, the least a decent state can do is keep its word,” Johnson said. “Life without parole is not cruelty. It is the only mercy left for the living: the mercy of not having to fight the same battle on repeat.”
Jeannine Pacioni, president of the California District Attorneys Association and Monterey County District Attorney, said the consequences for families begin well before any decision to release an offender.
“It begins with preparing to speak again about the crime, the person they lost, and why the original sentence was imposed. No regulation can give a family back the peace that process takes from them,” Pacioni said. “An administrative rulemaking process is not a substitute for the legislature or the voters in deciding whether the promise of life without parole should be changed for thousands of families.”
Today’s press conference at the California Firefighters Memorial in Sacramento brings the speakers together with Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire, the Vanderschoot family and Estella Hulbert, whose two children were murdered and whose killer received two life-without-parole sentences. CJLF President and CEO Anne Marie Schubert was also present to deliver opening remarks and moderate the program.
###
About Senator Roger Niello
Elected in 2022, Senator Niello represents California Senate District 6, which covers portions of Placer and Sacramento Counties.
About the Peace Officers Research Association of California
The Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC) was incorporated in 1953 as a professional federation of local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. PORAC represents nearly 90,000 public safety members and over 960 associations, making it the largest law enforcement organization in California and the largest statewide association in the nation.
About the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation
Founded in 1982, the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation (CJLF) is a Sacramento-based nonprofit public-interest law organization dedicated to protecting public safety and the rights of crime victims through litigation and policy research. Learn more at cjlf.org/protect-victims.