In re BRANDEE TRIPP
Governor's denial of parole was supported by "some evidence" where the underlying crime was the kidnap and murder of a 10 year old child, the motive for which was to obtain money and to prevent victim from testifying against an accused child molester; defendant admitted participating in the planning of the kidnapping, which was actually executed by others; and defendant's ambiguous testimony at parole hearing supported governor's determination that she helped plan murder and that she remains a danger to public safety. Reliance upon commitment offense as primary basis for denial of parole is not a due process violation where circumstances of the crime reliably established by evidence in the record rationally indicate that the offender will present an unreasonable public safety risk if released from prison, taking into consideration such factors as the offender's age, post release plans, and institutional behavior, and giving high degree of deference to governor's balancing of the factors.
Comments on In re BRANDEE TRIPP