
CA bill would allow inmates sentenced to life without parole to seek early release if crime was before age 26
The California Senate approved a measure Tuesday that would allow inmates sentenced to life without parole the opportunity to request an early release if their crimes were committed before the age of 26.
Senate Bill 672, the Youth Rehabilitation and Opportunity Act, passed the Senate by a 24-11 party-line vote. The proposal now heads to the Assembly.
The bill, introduced by Democratic Sen. Susan Rubio, was amended to exclude criminals convicted of certain offenses the chance to seek parole, including those who killed a law enforcement officer or carried out a mass shooting at a school, among other offenses.
Republicans criticized their Democratic colleagues for passing the bill, saying the "soft-on-crime" proposal helps criminals and ignores victims.
Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones said Democrats "just opened the prison gates for over 1,600 cold-blooded killers."
"Democrat lawmakers across the aisle have proven time and time again they don't care about the victim or their family," he said in a statement. "They don't care about keeping the public safe. They care about defending killers."
"This bill isn't about second chances for petty offenders. It grants opportunity for release to some of the most violent criminals," Sen. Kelly Seyarto said. "These individuals were sentenced to life without parole for crimes so extreme that the justice system deemed them beyond rehabilitation. Instead of weakening our justice system, we should be focusing on strengthening public safety and protecting Californians."
Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil said the people who committed these "depraved" crimes have "earned their sentence," and it is "simply wrong for Democrat legislators to think they know better than the judges and juries who heard these cases."
"We're not talking about children who committed a 'youthful indiscretion'; these are adults who committed planned murders with special circumstances," she said. "We say kill this bill, not free these killers."
In a post on X, State Assembly Republican Caucus press secretary George Andrews labeled the legislation a "get-out-of-prison plan" for people convicted of murder before age 26.
Crime Victims United, in a letter to Rubio, wrote that the bill "threatens public safety and ignores the rights of crime victims and their families, as well as the efforts of local law enforcement, district attorneys, jurors, and the legal processes and resources that resulted in their conviction and sentence."
The bill notes that existing law states that victims' rights at a parole hearing will not be changed with this proposal.
Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher, a Republican, has vowed to attempt to kill the bill when it reaches the Assembly.
"This is what happens when soft-on-crime activists make the rules," Gallagher told Fox News Digital. "They're bending over backwards to help murderers while families are still grieving. These aren't kids. They're violent adults who earned life without parole. We're going to kill this bill in the Assembly and make sure California doesn't become a sanctuary for violent offenders."
Fox News Digital has reached out to the offices of Rubio and Democratic co-authors Josh Becker, María Elena Durazo, Caroline Menjivar and Sasha Renée Pérez for comment.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Washington Post
30 minutes ago
- Washington Post
L.A. protests live updates: Trump calls up Marines, doubles Guard deployment; Newsom to sue again
In a sharp escalation, the Trump administration doubled its initial National Guard deployment to Los Angeles on Monday night, pushing the number of assigned military personnel to 4,800 — about 4,100 Guard troops and 700 Marines. California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) called on President Donald Trump to 'Rescind your illegal order immediately' and pledged to file another lawsuit against the administration over sending in Marines, after California sued on Monday over the deployment of the Guard. Police and protesters faced off downtown as demonstrations over immigration raids continued. L.A. residents denounced the Trump administration's actions as an assault on the city's core values. California Gov. Gavin Newsom vowed to sue the Trump administration over its deployment of 700 Marines to Los Angeles Monday night. This lawsuit would be the second from California, which earlier Monday sued the Trump administration over its order to deploy 2,000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles without the governor's consent. LOS ANGELES — The Pentagon on Monday ordered a battalion of 700 Marines to Los Angeles and mobilized an additional 2,000 National Guard troops as protests of the Trump administration's immigration policies spilled into a fourth day, escalating a confrontation between the White House and the country's most populous state.
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Opinion: Read with your child to avoid the "Summer slide"
School is out and summer is here. Parents may be seeking creative activities for their children to make the best use of their time and imagination. Let's not forget ways to encourage reading and fostering a love of books, during the school break, to slow down the 'Summer Slide.' That is where academic skills, including reading, tend to diminish during the summer months. A paper published by Home Libraries noted, '… on average, students' achievement scores decline over summer vacation by the equivalent of one month of learning.' So, what should parents and caregivers do to keep a check on that decline? One way is for parents and caregivers to try and remember being your child's age and what books you read and loved that stayed with you throughout the years. For me, it was 'I Love You, Stinky Face' by Lisa McCourt. For others, it might have been some version of Aesop's Fables, Dr. Seuss, or 'Good Night Moon.' If you take just 15-20 minutes per day to read to and with your children, you will spend quality time together while sparking a love for books and reading that will carry into continued learning as they grow older. Michelle Stantial, special education teacher in Houston, Texas, and owner of Woodland Havens Counseling, recently wrote about when she was younger and she and her mother took turns reading the 'Anne of Green Gables' series. Today? Who knows? Maybe it's Harry Potter, Pete the Cat, or some other popular book. 'Choose a chapter book that you both can enjoy — adventure stories, mysteries, or books with strong characters are great choices,' Stantial said 'Set aside 20–30 minutes a few evenings a week to read aloud together. Then, talk about the characters and what might happen next.' If you want to take it a step further, have your child dress like one of the characters in the book you are reading. Whatever you do to keep them engaged with books, it will lead to setting them up for success and offering quality time with them. This is important to know. The 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) concluded that average reading scores on the NAEP fell three points from 2019 to 2022. That was the largest decline since 1990. 'Understanding that it is in the first years of life that a child's future educational success is determined, you as a parent or caregiver are their first and most important teacher,' said Early Learning Coalition of Brevard County's Board Chair and former teacher, Alan Bergman. 'It is our passion and our mission to celebrate literacy efforts across the County.' As you think about this, keep the Early Learning Coalition of Brevard in mind. We have several reading opportunities and events for your child, so let's not have this summer be a forgotten chapter in their learning progression. Laura Gambino is the Chief Executive Officer of the Early Learning Coalition of Brevard Here are Summer reading events and activities sponsored by the Early Learning Coalition of Brevard County: sponsored programs (open to the public) include: locations at Taylor Park (Cocoa), Orchid Lake Housing (Cocoa), The HUB at Endeavor Elementary School (Cocoa), Coastal Health Systems (Rockledge), Lutheran Church of the Resurrection (Cocoa Beach), United Methodist Church (Mims), Just for Kids (Titusville), Neighbor Up – The Dock (Melbourne), Boys & Girls Club (Melbourne), and the ELCB office (Melbourne) story time sessions are held at various locations throughout Brevard County with themes that include Healthcare Heroes, a space-themed Soaring into Summer, and the Dog Days of Summer. Click to view our upcoming events: – register your child, aged 0-5, for a free book each month delivered to your home. Register here: – the first in Brevard County will open in Provost Park, Cocoa, in late July. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Spark a love of reading ib your children by reading with them
Yahoo
30 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Here's what Brevard voters need to know for Election Day about Senate, House races
Today is Election Day in Brevard. Voters will go to the polls June 10 for the special election to fill Florida Senate District 19 and Florida House District 32 seats. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 77 locations throughout Brevard County. They will be staffed by a total of 692 poll workers. Here is what voters need to know about these elections: Voters who vote on Election Day need to remember to vote in their precinct-specific polling location. Brevard County Supervisor of Elections Tim Bobanic said voters need to bring a valid current photo and signature ID. Assigned precincts can be found on with the 'Find Your Precinct' tab; on a voter information card; or on the sample ballot that has been mailed to each registered voter in Senate District 19 or House District 32. Bobanic said there have been some polling location changes, so voters should verify the location of their Election Day polling place. The candidates are Republican Debbie Mayfield of Indialantic and Democrat Vance Ahrens of Grant-Valkaria. The seat became vacant when the incumbent, Randy Fine, resigned, effective March 31, to run for a seat in Congress in Florida's 6th Congressional District, a six-county area that includes Daytona Beach. Fine won the congressional seat in an April 1 election. Mayfield has been a member of the Florida House, representing District 32, since November. She resigned her seat on June 9 to run for this Senate seat, which she previously held before having to give it up in 2024 because of term limits. Because of the gap in tenure, Mayfield is allowed to seek the Senate seat again in this election. Mayfield on April 1 won a four-candidate primary for the Senate seat, receiving 60.81% of the vote. Ahrens worked in health care as a surgical technician for more than 20 years, and currently works as a retail manager. Ahrens previously sought this seat in 2024, losing to Fine and getting 40.64% of the vote. The district includes most of Brevard County, except for Titusville and areas north of Titusville. The election winner will serve the remainder of Fine's four-year term, which runs until November 2028. Florida Senate members have a salary of $29,697 a year. The candidates are Republican Brian Hodgers of Viera and Democrat Juan Hinojosa of Rockledge. The seat will become vacant because of Mayfield's resignation to run for the Senate District 19 seat. Hodgers is a real estate broker and insurance agent. On April 1, Hodgers won a close three-candidate Republican primary for this seat, receiving 35% of the vote. Hinojosa is a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. Hinojosa previously ran for the House District 32 seat in 2024, losing to Mayfield and getting 35.72% of the vote. The district includes much of Central Brevard County. The election winner will serve the remainder of Mayfield's two-year term, which runs until November 2026. Florida House members have a salary of $29,697 a year. Yes. The deadline to register to vote in this election — also known as "book closing" — was May 12. There are 401,333 registered voters in Senate District 19 eligible to vote in this election. Of those, 44.9% are Republicans; 25.9% are Democrats; 25.5% are no-party-affiliation voters; and 3.7% are members of a minor political party. There are 137,773 registered voters in House District 32. Of those, 46.9% are Republicans; 24.4% are Democrats; 25.1% are no-party-affiliation voters; and 3.6% are members of a minor political party. All of them also live within Senate District 19, so they can vote in both races. Voter turnout for the primary was 21.71% of eligible voters. Under state law, the Republican primary was open only to registered Republicans. As of the morning of June 9, there have been 25,674 votes cast by mail for this election, In addition 17,898 voters cast ballots in in-person early voting, which ran from May 31 through June 7 at nine locations throughout Brevard. In all, 10.86% of eligible voters have voted so far. Of those, 22,033 votes were cast by Republicans; 14,764 by Democrats; 6,049 by no-party-affiliation voters; and 730 by members of a minor political party. "Turnout for the 2025 special general election has been light," Bobanic said. "Mail ballot and early voting have us sitting at a little over 10% overall turnout. If voters follow the same trend as the special primary, the majority of voters will cast their ballot on Election Day." Precincts 305 and 324: Moved from Melbourne Beach Town Hall Community Center, 509 Ocean Ave., Melbourne Beach, to St. Sebastian's by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 2010 Oak St., Melbourne Beach. Precincts 310 and 329: Moved from Central Baptist Church, 2503 Country Club Road, Melbourne, to Joseph N. Davis Community Center, 2547 Bruce D. Buggs St., Melbourne. Precincts 421 and 430: Moved from Suntree United Methodist Church, 7400 N. Wickham Road, Suntree, to St. Katherine Greek Orthodox Church, 5965 N. Wickham Road, Suntree. Precincts 424 and 429: Moved from Church at Viera, 9005 N. Wickham Road, Viera, to Viera Regional Community Center, 2300 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Viera. Precincts 500 and 528: Moved from Tropical Haven Auditorium, 1205 S. Eddie Allen Road, Melbourne, to Melbourne Public Library, 540 E. Fee Ave., Melbourne. Precinct 505: Moved from First Baptist Church of Indialantic, 170 Washington Ave., Indialantic, to Eastminster Presbyterian Church, 106 N. Riverside Drive, Indialantic. (This is a temporary move just for this election.) Bobanic said filled-out mail ballots must be brought to one of the four administrative offices by 7 p.m. on Election Day. They are not accepted at polling places. These are the Brevard office locations: Melbourne: South Brevard Service Complex, 1515 Sarno Road, Building A. Palm Bay: South Mainland Service Center, 450 Cogan Drive SE. Titusville: Government Complex-North, 400 South St., Suite 1F. Viera: Government Center, 2725 Judge Fran Jamieson Way, Building C, Suite 105. Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Berman at dberman@ on X at @bydaveberman and on Facebook at This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Brevard voters can cast ballots in special elections for Senate, House