EASING UP ON KILLERS ARNOLD MORE LIKELY TO PAROLE THAN DAVIS.

Byline: David M. Drucker Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO - Reversing Gov. Gray Davis' near zero-tolerance policy against paroling convicted murderers, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proven to be 50 times more likely to give second chances to killers.

Democrat Davis, in his five years in office, blocked all but six parole recommendations for killers and kidnappers, with two of the recommendations involving the same inmate. Republican Schwarzenegger, in office less than 12 months, has approved 60 parole recommendations from the state Board of Prison Terms for convicts guilty of the most serious crimes.

That makes him, on average, 50 times more lenient than Davis. But Schwarzenegger aides dispute any suggestion he is soft on crime, noting that he has blocked 88 parole recommendations since taking office last Nov. 17.

They say gang members, repeat offenders and those who commit heinous crimes are unlikely to benefit from Schwarzenegger's inclination to uphold Board of Prison Terms decisions and his faith in rehabilitation.

``This governor believes his board should be vested with the discretion and authority to make the call in all cases,'' Peter Siggins, Schwarzenegger's secretary for legal affairs, said in an interview. ``He believes that people can reform.''

Since taking office, Schwarzenegger has appointed two members to the nine-member board that approves or rejects parole requests.

His appointees include victims' rights advocate Susan Fisher, an Oceanside Republican who is a member of the San Diego County chapter of Parents of Murdered Children.

The governor opposes Proposition 66, which would soften the California ``three strikes, you're out'' law that makes criminals eligible for a sentence of 25 years to life if they commit a third felony. Still, some victims' rights advocates remain disappointed with Schwarzenegger's record, preferring Davis' hard-line stance.

``Gov. Schwarzenegger has released many prisoners in a short time,'' said Harriet Salarno, chairwoman of Crime Victims United of California and parent of a daughter who was murdered. ``We have great concerns.''

Under California law, the governor weighs in on very few cases. Most paroled prisoners - about 95 percent - re-enter society when their sentence dictates. The governor and the board have no power to block them.

The remaining 5 percent have indeterminate sentences, such as 25 years to life in prison. Each one becomes eligible for parole after serving the minimum time his sentence prescribes.

Based on the parole board's voting record, about 80 percent of eligible parolees - usually those convicted of first- or second-degree murder or kidnapping - are kept behind bars. The board allows about 20 percent to go free as long as the governor does not reverse its decision.

Of the 350-plus parole recommendations to cross Davis' desk, he reversed all but six - however, two of the six cases involved the same convict.

Half of the 155 cases Schwarzenegger has considered are Davis reversals that have returned for reconsideration. About a dozen of those were ordered by the courts.

Davis declined to comment on the issue.

But a former spokesman who was charged with explaining the former governor's parole policies prior to his leaving office said Davis, a Vietnam veteran and lawyer, did not believe murderers deserved a second chance - partly because their crimes prevented their victims from taking advantage of the same opportunity.

``Gov. Davis worked very hard to make sure the victim and the victim's family were a part of the parole equation - he always tried to make sure the victim had a voice in a possible parole,'' said Byron Tucker, who now works for Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi.

``Gov. Davis certainly respected the guidance and wisdom that the BPT provided him, but he had a different philosophy when it came to paroling persons who had been convicted of violent crimes.''

Of the 155 paroles granted by the parole board under Schwarzenegger, he has upheld 60, including 38 second-degree murders, 13 first-degree murders, two attempted murders and six kidnappings. Of the 88 cases he reversed, 66 were second-degree murders while 22 involved first-degree murder.

A review of some of the parole recommendations Schwarzenegger reversed - as explained in letters the governor wrote declaring his decision - found a consistent pattern of concerns that led to the reversals.

Schwarzenegger objected to parole, for instance, in these cases: A 1981 gang-related second-degree murder in La Puente, a 1977 home-invasion robbery and first-degree murder in San Bernardino, and a 1977 record store robbery and murder in Long Beach.

He cited one, or a combination, of the following factors as reasons for reversing the parole recommendations: the inmate is still a danger to society, the violent nature of the crime, the failure on the part of the inmate to take full responsibility for his crime, or the objections of county law enforcement officials.

Siggins characterized many of the 60 cases where the parole recommendation was not reversed as murder accessories, or involving domestic disputes and drug deals that went awry.

``Typically they're older, have spent a lot of time locked up, and have no intention of going back. Frankly, they come out better prepared because they go through that vetting process,'' said Richard Rimmer, deputy director of the state prison system's Parole and Community Services Division.

Los Angeles County District Attorney Steve Cooley finds it ``unfortunate'' that the death-penalty option for murderers is not utilized more often, but supports Schwarzenegger's inclination to uphold parole recommendations.

Cooley, known as a tough but pragmatic prosecutor, said Schwarzenegger's policy is similar to that of former Republican Govs. Pete Wilson and George Deukmejian, a former state attorney general.

`I prefer a policy, when you have life with the possibility of parole, that the possibility not be made unrealistic or impossible,'' he said. ``You shouldn't render any lawful options irrelevant for an ideological position.''

Parole board Chief Counsel Terry Farmer contended that parolees have a good record of staying out of trouble although officials said they could not provide exact figures. Corrections Department officials said few of those freed by the board have violated their parole and returned to prison.

The board bases parole decisions on the findings of a two-person panel consisting of one board member and one career deputy commissioner of parole. The two-person panel considers multiple factors including the nature of the crime, behavior while in prison, psychological evaluation, education and ability to find employment.

``I think the record is very good in terms of (parolees) not committing new offenses,'' Farmer said.

David M. Drucker, [phone]

david.drucker(at)dailybulletin.com

PAROLE RECORD

Here are some murder cases in which Gov. Gray Davis blocked parole but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger accepted the Board of Prison Terms recommendation and allowed parole:

--Rocky LaBoa was convicted of first-degree murder for his part in a robbery and its aftermath on Nov. 23, 1980. He and three acquaintances went to the home of Juan Morones, 33, in Hanford to sell him illegal weapons. They ended up robbing Morones, and another one of the four - Michael Denny - fatally shot Morones in what Denny called an accident. LaBoa was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison.

--Randy Mendoza was convicted of first-degree murder for stabbing liquor store clerk Dan Montgomery in Fresno on Nov. 11, 1973. He and a friend beat and stabbed Montgomery repeatedly. Mendoza was sentenced to seven years to life in prison.

--Stephen O'Connell was convicted of second-degree murder for strangling his ex-wife, Jan Marie Conger, 30, on Aug. 29, 1981, at a party at the home of a mutual friend in San Jose. Witnesses said O'Connell acted calm and told them: ``I've been waiting a long time for this and she is finally gone.'' According to a crime report, he believed she was going to take his daughter away from him.

O'Connell was sentenced to 15 years to life.

--Jose Pasten was convicted of second-degree murder in the deaths of Lynette Denise Johnson and Kevin Ray Bell, both 28, on Jan. 24, 1988, in Hawthorne. Pasten, then 19, was driving a pickup truck at 95 mph and ran a red light, hitting the victims' car and severing it.

Pasten was drunk with a .24 percent blood alcohol level, three times the current legal limit. An open container of alcohol was found in his truck. He was sentenced to 15 years to life.

--Ray Skinner was convicted of second-degree murder for killing his wife of 29 years on July 21, 1983. Skinner beat her with a wine bottle and cut her throat with the broken edge of the bottle. He was arrested on Highway 101 near Petaluma after he walked into traffic saying: ``Kill me, kill me.''

--Johnny Martinez was convicted of second-degree murder in the Oct. 1, 1984, shooting death of Jesus Granados in Los Angeles County. Martinez shot him with a rifle following a fight between Granados' brother and a friend of Martinez. He was sentenced to 17 years to life.

--Zeferino Barron was convicted of second-degree murder in the Aug. 1, 1980, shooting death of Adam Rosa, 39, in Los Angeles County. Barron fired seven rounds from a handgun at Rosa, a security guard at a strip club, after Rosa intervened in Barron's harassment of a dancer on the stage. He was sentenced to 17 years to life.

- Daily News

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PAROLE RECORDS (see text)