California Gov. Gavin Newsom has lessened the sentence of a woman convicted of bludgeoning her stepfather to death three decades ago.
Newsom, a Democrat, commuted the life sentence of Teresa Paulinkonis on Friday. Paulinkonis had been in prison for 31 years after being convicted of helping her mother murder her stepfather on New Year’s Eve in 1988, according to CBS Bay Area.
Paulinkonis will immediately be eligible for release on parole.
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“The act of clemency for Ms. Paulinkonis does not minimize or forgive her conduct or the harm it caused,” Newsom said in a statement announcing the decision. “It does recognize the work she has done since to transform herself.”
Paulinkonis, who was 24 at the time of the murder, earned an associate’s degree while in prison, and her behavior has been praised by several of the guards.
Prosecutors said that Paulinkonis and her mother first tried to poison her stepfather, 67-year-old Paul Paulinkonis, but he merely got sick and recovered. Teresa Paulinkonis then beat him to death with a lead pipe while he watched television.
Paulinkonis’s attorney, Lilli Paratore, said that the stepfather had sexually abused Theresa, but no mention of any abuse was included in Newsom’s explanation.
“Given her history of sexual violence and status as a survivor, which the [clemency] board hadn’t given the appropriate weight or consideration to, we were able to convince the governor that it was time for her to come home,” Paratore said. “I think it’s a great step in the right direction, but I think Gov. Newsom has the power to commute many more people, especially those who have already served very long sentences, and he should.”
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The pardon of Paulinkonis was 1 of 20 acts of clemency from Newsom on Friday, and the list included reprieves for people convicted of murder, robbery, burglary, drug crimes, and other felonies.
