Written by Michael Palomba
A California District Attorney slammed Gov. Newsom after he took no action to prevent the release of a convicted murderer who tortured and sexually assaulted a 17-year-old boy before killing him.
“How Governor Newsom refused to take a stand for Eric, an innocent 17-year-old young man who was brutally tortured, sodomized, and executed, is beyond comprehension,” Ward said in a statement Monday.
Governor takes no action to prevent release of convicted killer –> https://t.co/5Xaz12z0Cn. pic.twitter.com/zfsp3Up7WR
— Tulare County DA (@TulareDA) January 25, 2021
According to Fox News, Gerardo Zavala, 48, and six other Hispanic men lured Eric Jones into a house where they beat, sodomized, and even electrocuted him. Prosecutors said that at one point the men taped wires to Jones’ fingers and stuck them into wall outlets. They also ‘hurled racial epithets’ at Jones, who was Black.
After torturing and sexually assaulting the boy, the group threw him into a trunk and drove down a rural road where they shot him 10 times at point-blank range.
Authorities later found Jones’ body on the side of the road near Allensworth. Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward said the body was riddled with bullets and that the words “Pepe’s B—h” were written on his back in permanent marker.
Assistant District Attorney David Alavezos, who prosecuted Zavala and four other suspects, described the crime scene as “the worst I have ever seen.”
Zavala was arrested 4 days later and confessed to taking part in the crime. In 2006 he was convicted of second-degree murder, torture, kidnapping, and sentenced to 18 years to life in prison. 3 accomplices were sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole, one received a 15-year sentence, and the last two are believed to have fled to Mexico, according to Ward’s office.
In addition to Zavala’s heinous crime, he is the subject of an ICE hold request. California law prohibits state law enforcement from working with ICE, so the request will likely be ignored.
According to the parole board, Zavala has “a stellar disciplinary record” and has expressed remorse. The board previously recommended Zavala’s release in 2017, but then-Gov. Jerry Brown overruled the decision.
Newsom is no stranger to bad decisions, but allowing the release of a murderer and sexual predator who killed an innocent African American boy may take the cake. Despite the remorse expressed by Zavala, Eric Jones’ family will never get their loved one back.
To sign the petition to oust Newsom from office, for this decision and countless others, go to RescueCalifornia.org.
