In summary
People convicted of serious sex offenses must serve at least 25 years in prison and cannot receive parole until age 65 under a new California. Previously, some could earn parole at 50.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Wednesday that will raise the age of parole eligibility for sex offenders serving life sentences.
A Sacramento-area legislator brought forward the bill, which raises the age of eligibility from 50 to 65 for people who have already served 25 years in prison, after the Board of Parole Hearings recommend release of two sex offenders from her district who were serving life sentences.
“It takes a more targeted approach and draws a clear line for the most serious sexual offenses, including cases involving multiple victims, while raising the bar for others before they can even be considered for release,” said bill author Stephanie Nguyen, a Democratic Assemblymember from Elk Grove.
Some civil rights and prisoner advocacy groups raised concerns about the proposals, arguing they could weaken parole laws that have proven effective in reducing the state’s incarcerated population.
The two paroled men, David Allen Funston and Gregory Lee Vogelsang, each had been convicted of multiple sexual assaults against young children in the Sacramento region.
Funston earned parole at 67 years old after serving 27 years. He had originally been sentenced to three consecutive 25 years-to-life terms, plus an additional 20-year sentence.
Vogelsang earned parole at 57, also after serving 27 years. He had originally been sentenced to 355 years-to-life.
Vogelsang’s parole in particular prompted both the Sacramento County sheriff and district attorney to protest his release. Vogelsang was convicted of molesting at least six children between the ages of 5-11.
“The parole board is letting us down,” Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper said at a March press conference. “They are horrible. I will say that out front. They are horrible. After this case and the Funston case, they need to be gone. Period.”
The board rescinded Vogelsang’s parole in June.
In Funston’s case, the parole board found him eligible for parole in September 2025.
In January, Newsom requested a review of the parole decision, and in February, the parole board granted Funston’s release to Placer County authorities, who charged him with a 1996 child sexual assault and have since held him in custody.
The Prison Policy Initiative, which opposes what it calls over-criminalization, wrote in opposition to the bill that it is unnecessarily punitive to a population that shows few signs of reoffending.
“The three-year recidivism rate for people released through California’s elderly parole hearing process is remarkably low –– among the lowest in the nation,” the Massachusetts-based nonprofit wrote in opposition to the bill.
“There has never been a documented case of sexual re-offense by someone released through the Elderly Parole program, further undermining the premise of this bill.”
The bill will take effect on Jan. 1, and would limit eligibility for the Elderly Parole Program to people over 65 who were sentenced for a one-strike sex offenses, aggravated assault of a child, sex acts on a child 10 years old or younger, or someone who is considered a habitual sexual offender.
