There’s no doubt our prisons are overcrowded and prime breeding grounds for coronavirus. According to the Marshall Project, there have been more than 25,000 positive tests for the coronavirus in prisons across the country and 373 deaths.
Letting non-violent criminals out of prison early seemed a logical choice. A reduced prison population would make containing the coronavirus easier.
But just because someone is convicted of a “non-violent” crime doesn’t mean they’re non-violent criminals. In Colorado, this was sadly proven to be true.
A former inmate released from prison early on April 15 was arrested for the murder of a 21-year-old woman, Heather Perry. Cornelius Haney has a criminal record stretching back a decade but was cleared to be released four months early from completing his sentence.
The felon, whose criminal history stretches back more than a decade, was serving a seven-year sentence for robbery when he was freed in accordance with a state executive order designed to reduce the prison population during the public health crisis.
The order allowed some inmates to leave prison and enter what it called “special needs parole,” according to 9News-Denver.
It should be noted that “special needs parole” does not mean any kind of increased or enhanced supervision.
“When looking at special needs parole criteria, the Department of Corrections’ medical staff reviews offenders for risk factors related to COVID as documented by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC),” the spokesman told the station.
“The clinical team reviews the inmate’s medical records to individually confirm the existence of conditions and their severity. The Department also reviews information related to their crime of incarceration and behavior inside the facility. Once the medical and parole team has made a recommendation, the packet is forwarded to the Parole Board for review.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis was in full CYA mode.
Gov. Jared Polis acknowledged Friday that Haney was released under an executive order he issued, but said the parole board could not have held Haney much longer.
“He would have had mandatory parole granted in August of this year,” Polis stated. “He has been up for parole since 2017.”
Did anyone bother to ask why Haney had been denied parole for three years? But it’s OK, says Polis, because he was going to be released anyway.
Polis said the parole board has a tough job.
“In making those decisions, they are taking into account the safety of prison guards and others, but no prisoner who is a danger to society should be released early in any situation,” Polis stated. “And of course, nobody on that parole board thought that this person was going to do what they allegedly did, but they couldn’t have held them much longer under the law.”
We’ll be sure to let Ms. Perry’s family know she was probably going to be murdered anyway, whether it happened now or four months from now. Somehow, I don’t think that would be very comforting to them.
“We are a mess, it’s just really hard,” Perry’s cousin, Ashley Thompson, said. “My whole family, they are pretty ripped apart. She was our baby.”
Perry was a mother of two. The young mom endured a tough life, but Thompson says she was resilient, smart and kind.
“The hardest thing could hit her, and she would get back up, more resilient each time and she would still do it with a smile, and she would still do it with a big spark in her eye,” Thompson said.
All those criminals’ lives saved and all of them put together aren’t worth as much as the one innocent life that was taken unnecessarily.
Our governor is a Hiv positive Homosexual who claims he was a family man and the people of CO were to stupid to figure this out. Do you think the bias Denver Post, The Boulder Camera, or any other bias media in the state reported this.
The people who knew it was Hiv positive Homosexual thought it would cool to have a punk like this in the governors mansion.
Burn the frigging homo to kill the virus and for releasing the scum
Why did the title of this piece change from, “Criminal Given Early Release Because of Coronavirus Murders a Woman” to: “Criminal Given Early Release From Prison Because of Coronavirus Accused of Murdering a Woman May 16, 2020”
WFT: is it “murders a woman” or is “accused of murdering a woman”? Do you really know or are you expressing an opinion like mainstream media???
Prisons overcrowded? More need to be executed.
Bingo!! This is exactly what needs to be done. The bleeding hearts will never allow it.
Agreed. But that wouldn’t be humane to have these poor murders executed. Especially after15-20 years of good prison life burning up their appeals and so on. Not to mention, hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars sent on their medical, Dental, room and board. Oh don’t let me forget attorney fees. I’m so discussed with what happened to the poor young lady that lost her life that he took. Sorry for the venting and my condolences to the family that lost their precious loved one.
Outstanding idea, agree totally. Stop making prisons vacation spots, make them pay
You get the “Post Of The Day” award!!! REAL justice; rare, medium or well done??
IDIOTS. IDIOTS. Who lets a murderer FREE from jail. What utter nonsense. If I was a family member of the woman killed, I’d be pointing fingers and looking for payback. Angry? Absolutely they should be angry. If I were the responsible person for this insanity, I’d hide my head in shame and resign!! And one other thing. I’d hide!!!
He wasn’t a murderer until he got out! Read the whole article if you are going to make comments.
He shouldn’t have gotten out. If he would have perished with the COVID-19 in prison, there would still be a wonderful innocent young woman alive to raise her children.
I can’t understand letting prisoners go early AT ALL because of COVID-19. Okay, people are spreading it in prison, so we will let them go and spread it in the population?? Confine the disease in prison, treat them in prison, don’t let someone who is carrying this virus loose so he can commit another crime or spread the disease to the outside of prison. Is it stupid to tell law abiding citizens to “stay home” and let criminals out so they can NOT stay home?? This is insane!
That’s the point HOPE. Read the article concerning his past history if you are going to make comments. The Governor and parole board were HOPING he would be a good boy and HOPING his past was behind him and
he was sufficiently rehabilitated. Now that their politically correct scheme has backfired they are HOPING people
will have a short memory, which they do, and HOPEFULLY forget this. I HOPE you and your family never experience the ramifications of the democRATic misguided, PC, and just plain stupid policies like the family of this poor young woman are dealing with now. HOPE you have a safe day HOPE.
REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER – VOTE REPUBLICAN!!!!
all i can say is “yup”
What difference voting D or R?? One big happy party skimming our hard earned money into their family coffers. Professional politicians need to be eliminated for the good of the people. Between the lawyers and the activist judges these animals are slowly robbing us blind and flushing our country down the toilet. It has to stop sooner rather than later.
Well trump has already purchased quite a number of votes.
VOTE them OUT! I am sick and pissed off over all the SH*t in Washington DC. Trump has been thwarted since he was elected. He should get a 4 year do-over after this next election.
Remember this next election time, and vote all the liberal commie Democrats out of office.
The governor of the state that released those criminals in which a woman was killed in cold blood should be charged with her murder, prosecuted and sentenced to death within one week and see how he feels!!!!
The sad fact is that under the states guidelines he had a mandatory release date that was imminent no matter what, but if you read further, she was in a program to help released incarcerated felons, that’s how they met. Not all released criminals re offend, I am speaking from personal experience. The fact remains that this event has not gained the national notoriety as another issue in Geogia. Loss of life is utterly devastating, but the media can play out there own scenario. #JUSTICEFORHEATHERPERRY
Yeah, he’ll be convicted, back in prison where we’ll have to pay for his room, board and medical for 20 or so years and then, wait for it, he’ll have ANOTHER mandatory release day and he’ll be back on the streets again!! The old saying, “Dead men tell no tales” is true. So is, “Dead men, executed for a terrible crime, with NOT reoffend!”
Make sure you thank a DEMONrat near you for this!!!
Well, the bright side is his release made room to imprison some slob for violating social distancing or even worse, for opening his business that it is prohibited to reopen……..Or Horrors, renting out his vacation rental to pay his mortgage.
America, we need to get the guns out, open everything up, go back to work, and give blazes to those who would stop us.
As much as I am against this, the fact in this case is that he was released 4 months early and that’s a short span of time. Meaning, when he would’ve gotten released four months from now, he would be the same kind of dangerous. So, in this case, someone got out a few months early instead of years. None of this makes sense, letting criminals out, so don’t get me wrong. I just feel the title of this article is a bit deceiving.