Media
Press Releases
Assessor, Clerk-Recorder, Registrar of Voters along with District Attorney to Begin Waiving Fees Relating to the Recording of Offensive Restrictive Covenant Modifications
Joint Press Release (Woodland, CA) - (August 25, 2020) – Yolo County Assessor, Clerk-Recorder, and Registrar of Voters Jesse Salinas, along with Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig, announced that fees related to the recording of Restrictive Covenant (CC&Rs)...
Beware of Fake Tax Lien Notifications
Press Release (Woodland, CA) - (August 18, 2020) – Now that tax season has come and gone, scammers are coming up with new ways to attempt to scam Yolo County residents. A new twist on the tax scam is the Tax Lien Letter which seeks to scare recipients by claiming...
Woodland Man Sentenced to 10 years in Prison for Pimping and Pandering Multiple Victims
Press Release (Woodland, CA) – August 13, 2020 - On August 7, 2020, the Honorable Paul Richardson of the Yolo County Superior Court sentenced a 41-year-old West Sacramento man, Ray Lawler Jr., to 10 years in state prison after his conviction for pimping and pandering...
Beware of Family Emergency Scam During COVID-19
Press Release (Translated into Spanish below) (Woodland, CA) - (August 5, 2020) – There is a common trick used by scammers who call posing as relatives or friends and need you to wire money for an emergency: to get out of jail, leave a foreign country, or pay a...
Man Convicted of 2001 Assault with a Deadly Weapon On Peace Officer and Reckless Evading Agrees to Stay in Prison for Three More Years
Press Release Woodland, CA) – July 30, 2020 On July 30, 2020, 56-year-old Phillip Arasa appeared before a two-commissioner panel of the Board of Parole Hearings for his first lifer parole hearing. Arasa was sentenced to 29 years-to-life in State Prison in 2007. At the...
Man Convicted of 2001 Assault with a Deadly Weapon and Criminal Threats is Denied Parole
Press Release (Woodland, CA) – July 27, 2020 On July 24, 2020, a two-commissioner panel of the Board of Parole Hearings denied parole to 42-year-old Gregory McKay who was sentenced to prison for 88 years-to-life in State Prison in 2004. At the time of the crime, McKay...
State Prison Approves Early Release of Inmate Serving Life Sentence for Arson and Threats to Rape and Kill, as a Result of Covid-19 Concerns
Zero Bail Releases since April have resulted in over 157 new crimes in Yolo County Press Release (Woodland, CA) - (July 24, 2020) -- The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has released Santiago Cruz, 65, of Sacramento, from state prison despite Cruz’s...
Four More Individuals Previously Released as a Result of California Judicial Council’s Statewide Emergency “0” Bail Schedule are Arraigned on New Charges
Press Release (Woodland, CA) – July 22, 2020 – Over the past several weeks, four more individuals previously released from custody as a result of California Judicial Council’s Statewide Emergency “0” Bail Schedule were charged with new felony crimes. The “0” Bail...
Man Convicted in 1996 Davis Hostage Case is Denied Parole
Ronald Martin held numerous store employees hostage at the Davis Co-op Press Release (Woodland, CA) – July 16, 2020- On July 16, 2020, a two-commissioner panel of the Board of Parole Hearings denied parole to 49-year-old Ronald Martin who was sentenced to prison for...
District Attorney calls for public hearing and evidence from Public Defender after she stands by her televised allegations of racist judges and corrupt local law enforcement officers.
Press Release Tracie Olson Yolo County Public Defender 814 North Street Woodland, CA 95695 Ms. Olson: It has been more than two weeks since you participated in a television interview in which you made the stunning allegation that you personally witnessed racism by...
Why We Seek Justice
Our team at the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office is comprised of a dedicated and diverse group of professionals. In our new video series “Why We Seek Justice” you will meet some of our amazing colleagues and hear their personal stories. We hope you enjoy!
Meet Deputy District Attorney Diane Ortiz
Meet Deputy District Attorney Kyle Hasapes
Meet Deputy District Attorney Amanda Zambor
Meet Multi-Disciplinary Interview Center Admin Clerk Shobna Sharma
Meet Deputy District Attorney Jay Linden
Podcasts
The Chronicles of Justice Episode 24: Car Break-ins
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 23: Citizens Academy Podcast
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 22: Breast Cancer Awareness – Virginia’s Story
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 21: Domestic Violence Awareness Month – 2017
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 20: From Victim to Survivor – A Story of Hope
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 19: An Interview with Lt. Dave Marshall
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 18: Yolo County Cannabis Task Force
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 17: Empower Yolo
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 16: Campus Detection Dogs
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 15: Safety at Picnic Day
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 14: Motorist & Bicyclist Collision Prevention
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 13: Human Trafficking Awareness
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 12: Campus Sexual Assault
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 11: Operation Vigilance
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 10: Domestic Violence Awareness Month
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 9: School Attendance Matters
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 8: Yolo Day Reporting Center & Restorative Justice
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 7: LGBTQIA Pride Month & Hate Crimes
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 6: Elder Financial Abuse
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 5: Victim Tribute
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 4: Child Abduction Unit
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 3: NHC Homeless Restorative Justice Program
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 2: Human Trafficking
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The Chronicles of Justice Episode 1: Sonias Story with DUI Prevention & Awareness
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Non-Violent Second Strikers
After a federal court ordered California to reduce prison overcrowding, a number of measures were put into place that result in early prison releases, including early parole consideration for individuals characterized as “non-violent second-strikers.” In order to qualify, inmates must not currently be serving a sentence for a crime which is legally categorized as a ‘violent felony’ and must not be required to register as sex offenders.
Starting January 1, 2015, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) began a new early parole determination process, evaluating “nonviolent second-strikers” for parole once they have served only 50 percent of their sentence or are within 12 months of having served 50 percent of their actual sentence. Upon receipt of inmate names from CDCR with a recommendation for release, the Board of Prison Hearings conducts an administrative review to determine if the inmate should be released from prison or retained for the term otherwise prescribed by law. The Board determines whether an offender would pose an unreasonable risk to public safety based on criminal history, behavior in prison, rehabilitation efforts, and written statements.
The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office takes an active role in evaluating these cases and writes letters to the Board with an overview of the inmate’s criminal history, an opinion regarding the public safety risk posed by the inmate, and the appropriateness, or lack thereof, of an inmate’s early release. However, because our resources are limited, we do not prepare letters in every case. Instead, we focus our opposition efforts on offenders who we believe pose the greatest risk to the community.
Many of the offenders who are granted early release from prison have violent and lengthy criminal histories. The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office feels it is important for the public to be aware of the so-called nonviolent offenders being released early from prison into our neighborhoods.
This web page was created to provide the names and criminal overview of the offenders who have been approved for early release despite our opposition. This list will be updated on a regular basis.