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FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- For a 2nd time successful a row, protesters gathered extracurricular of the Fresno County Juvenile Court successful enactment of families attending hearings and successful a propulsion to get justness reform.
Susan Grote's lad Matthew Bonds, his woman Guadalupe, his begetter Darrell, and his gramps Billy were each murdered successful Reedley successful January 2024.
The fishy was 17 years aged astatine the time.
Grote was backmost successful tribunal connected Tuesday arsenic she pushes for the lawsuit to beryllium transferred to big court.
"We mislaid 4 household members astatine 1 time, its just, I can't wrapper my caput astir it, you know? How these radical tin bash these crimes, but erstwhile there's nary punishment for these crimes, what connection is that sending to our youth," said Susan Grote, victims' household member.
Stephanie Tellez's son, Anthony Calderon, was changeable and killed successful cardinal Fresno connected Thanksgiving past year.
She besides had a presumption proceeding for 1 of the teen suspects successful her son's case.
She's pushing for change, not conscionable for her son, but for different victims.
"This is giving america purpose, we're retired present successful solidarity and trying to enactment each other, travel retired present and bash our champion to betterment Prop 57," said Stephanie Tellez, parent of homicide victim.
Proposition 57 was a ballot measurement approved by California voters successful 2016. Proponents reason that it increases nationalist information done rehabilitation and saves payer wealth by reducing the situation population.
District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp and immoderate members of her bureau fiercely reason the proposition.
Chief Deputy District Attorney of the Juvenile Unit, Galen Rutiaga, said nether Prop 57, the process to transportation juvenile offenders is much analyzable and often takes astir a year.
However, Rutiaga said the extremity isn't to transportation each teen offenders to big court.
"We're not going to bash a stolen car, adjacent if that idiosyncratic has galore times, that doesn't warrant being treated arsenic an adult," said Galen Rutiaga, Chief Deputy District Attorney Juvenile Unit. "We're looking astatine usually, typically convulsive crimes, they're gonna beryllium your shootings, equipped robberies, homicides."
He said if execution defendants aren't transferred to big tribunal and tried successful juvenile court, they tin perchance beryllium released good earlier their 25th birthday.
The families astatine the protestation said they privation to instrumentality this combat each the mode to Sacramento and person been dilatory gaining enactment from families successful different parts of the state.
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