A controversial California bill that would free some convicted felons serving life sentences has stalled in the Legislature and is not expected to move forward.
SB 94, authored by California State Senator Dave Cortese, would give certain people serving life sentences for crimes committed before June 5, 1990, the opportunity to petition for a review of their sentences.
Supporters of the bill said it is absolutely necessary to decongest the state's prisons.
For example, the editorial board of the Los Angeles Times He spoke in favor of SB 94. “Most of those eligible for crime are now in their 60s and 70s, well past the peak years of violent crime,” they argue.
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A view of the California State Capitol taken during the National League of Cities California State Capitol Advocacy Day on March 13, 2024 in Sacramento, California. (Arturo Holmes/Getty Images via National Urban League)
The committee also argued that SB 94 is not intended to unconditionally release prisoners, but rather creates a “multi-step process for filing appeals for resentencing,” and noted that “serial killers, cop killers, and sex offenders are not included.”
Ann Irvine, founder and executive director of Smart Justice California, called SB 94 “sound policy that advances the shared goals of public safety and rehabilitation.”
Cortese introduced SB 94 during the last legislative session, but the bill stalled to allow time for further negotiations and amendments, including narrowing the scope of eligible individuals and changing the petition attempt limit from three to one per person.
Cortese, who did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital by deadline, said in a statement that the amendments “include language requested by multiple law enforcement agencies, exclude torture as a 'special circumstance' and codify full protections for victims' rights.”
FILE – A California prison. A controversial bill in California that would have freed some convicted felons serving life sentences has stalled. (BOP)
SB 94 missed a deadline this week to include new amendments, and Governor Cortese acknowledged Thursday that there were not enough votes to pass the bill.
“California's corrections model often works, but we must do better. We must continue the conversation and reexamine the racially discriminatory, inconsistent and harmful sentencing practices that have disproportionately impacted Californians for more than two decades and will continue to cause chaos unless reformed,” Cortese said.
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers hailed SB 94's failure to pass this legislative session as a victory.
Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, a Republican from San Diego, called SB 94 “radical” and a “direct attack on the rights of California families who have suffered unimaginable losses of loved ones at the hands of violent criminals.”
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“Together, we have ensured that violent killers will forever lose their right to liberty when they brutally take a life,” Jones said in a statement. “Their punishment is a nominal sentence of life in prison. We are relieved that this dangerous bill was finally defeated this year, but we are prepared to continue the fight if it is passed again. Californians will not allow violent killers to roam our streets.”
Republican Sen. Kelly Seyart, R-Murrieta, said the outcome of SB 94 “would have been disastrous for public safety and victims' rights.”
SACRAMENTO, CA – MARCH 20: California Assemblyman Bill Essari, along with other members of Congress, will honor influential California women during Women's History Month on Monday, March 20, 2023 in Sacramento, California. (Jason Almond/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
“When voters come together and demand that their voices be heard, we know that even a supermajority must be taken seriously and the will of the people must be listened to,” Seyart said. “And that's what we saw today – a victory for the people over a dangerous policy proposal.”
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Republican Rep. Bill Essari of Corona denounced SB 94 as an insult to victims' families who must relive the horror of a crime during a parole hearing.
““This is so mean and so cruel to hurt these families. They need peace and closure and that's what's so devastating about this,” Essari said.
Essari argued that SB 94 is “just the beginning” of Democrats' broader ambitions for prison reform.
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““If this bill passes next year, they'll say, 'Okay, the new point is 1995, then 2000.' This gradualism is what they like to do in Congress,” Essari said, adding: “It took them a few years to get to where they wanted to go, but we all know where the destination is.”
