Nearly one-third of California prisoners released early during the COVID-19 pandemic by California Gov. Gavin Newsom ended up back in prison, according to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation data reported by CalMatters.
That includes 30 convicted felons who murdered someone AFTER they were released early from a California prison.
Thirty murder victims.
Among them:
– 43-year-old Tonya Molina who was strangled to death inside a San Diego motel room by Santiago Contreras, who was sentenced to prison for stalking, vandalism and assault, according to the corrections department. Contreras cut off her ankle monitor and then killed Molina.
– 40-year-old Karmen Anderson who was shot and killed while a four-year-old child sat in the backseat of his car. His killer. Jammerieo Austin, 29, was released in April 2020, after serving time for possessing/purchasing cocaine for sale, the corrections department said.
In total, between April 2020 and December 2021, the corrections department freed about 14,800 people early. Roughly 4,600 previously convicted felons had gone back to prison as of Jan. 31, 2025.
Of those who went back to prison after being released early, 14% were felons in possession of a gun, 10% committed assault, and 9% committed burglary. Vehicle theft, second-degree robbery and domestic abuse each accounted for about 4 to 5% of offenses.
Read the CalMatters article here: https://calmatters.org/…/california-covid-prisoner…/
Governor Newsom’s office declined to comment.
