Criminal Justice and Sentencing Policy

California’s parole board has granted release to Gregory Vogelsang, a 57‑year‑old serial child molester serving a 355‑year sentence for abusing at least six boys ages 5 to 11 in the 1990s, after just 27 years in prison under the state’s Elderly Parole Program. Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho and Sheriff Jim Cooper are publicly condemning the decision, noting that a state risk assessment rated Vogelsang’s likelihood of reoffending as “above average” and that he admitted at his hearing to still struggling with sexual fantasies about children. The case has spurred state Assemblyman Tom Lackey and other lawmakers to begin drafting a bill to tighten or limit elderly parole eligibility for serious sex offenders. Critics argue the unelected parole panel is endangering public safety by releasing high‑risk child predators, while Gov. Gavin Newsom opposed the parole but lacks direct power to overturn it, exposing a gap between sentencing, executive authority, and the current parole regime. The controversy follows similar outrage over another serial child sex offender, David Allen Funston, who was recently cleared for release under the same program, amplifying calls online and in Sacramento for structural changes to California’s parole laws.