When Californians backed Proposition 36 — a ballot initiative requiring stiffer penalties on some theft offenses and mandating treatment for some repeat drug crimes — last November with 70% of the vote, it wasn’t just about checking a box on a ballot. It was a demand from families like ours — families torn apart by violence — for a justice system that puts safety first by responding to California voters’ pleading for accountability and safer communities.
As advocates for crime victims across the state, we thought policymakers had finally realized that political rhetoric, grandstanding and gaslighting would no longer be tolerated, with Gov. Gavin Newsom having a long history of touting manipulated statistics on California crime that were directly countered by what we could see in our own communities. Yet our hope has slipped away as another legislative year has ended.
First, Newsom failed to fully and appropriately fund Proposition 36 during this year’s budget cycle — a direct slap in the face to voters. Then, there’s Assembly Bill 1376, which he recently signed into law. It sets strict time limits on court oversight for serious offenders, some as old as 25, letting them back onto our streets based on a calendar, not whether they’ve changed or our neighborhoods are safe. This isn’t progress; it’s playing dice with our lives and a politician’s way of weakening Proposition 36 through the legislative process.
This is more than rhetoric for crime victims — it’s heartbreak with real-world consequences. Take the mother of Sergio Bonboster. The state’s soft-on-crime stance is her reality after her 20-year-old son was brutally killed and his body mutilated in Fresno by a young woman who now walks free, studying on a college campus with state support. Yet it isn’t just one family’s nightmare. We see this happening in communities across California when our state leaders choose leniency over accountability. The state shut down the state-run secure facilities option, Division of Juvenile Justice, leaving the most heinous crimes to be handled at the local level.
Proposition 36 was voters’ line in the sand, telling policymakers and Newsom that we want a system that allows offenders to turn things around, but not by leaving communities vulnerable. Compassion isn’t just for those who break the law — it’s for the victims, too. It’s for the parents who bury their kids, the survivors who can’t sleep knowing their loved one’s killer is free and the everyday people who just want to feel safe walking home. But now, we see our state leaders purposely adopting policies to weaken Proposition 36 in an attempt to put criminals first.
Yet even as voters protest, Newsom ignores the pleas — more focused on his national profile than the people he serves. This is not what California needs right now. We need leaders who will face these problems head-on, not sidestep them with talking points and manipulated narratives that defy what Californians see in our communities every day.
As advocates, we’re done with empty words and fudged numbers. We’ve stood with too many families screaming for justice, only to be told their pain doesn’t fit the story Sacramento wants to tell. Proposition 36 wasn’t just a vote — it was a mandate. We can have accountability and rehabilitation without sacrificing safety. Protect our communities, help victims heal, and stop gambling with our lives under the banner of “reform.” If leaders keep ignoring us, the next tragedy is on them. Listen to the voters, stand with the families and support the implementation of Proposition 36. We owe it to every life lost to violence. Anything less is just letting us down.
Salarno is founder and chairperson of Crime Victims United and lives in Placer County. Wenskunas is founder and CEO of Crime Survivors and lives in Orange County.