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| Soliah seeks parole in Minnesota |
| By Los Angeles Times |
| Published: 03/05/2009 |
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March 5, 2009 Soliah Former Symbionese Liberation Army member Kathleen Soliah was released from state prison in March 2008, only to be re-arrested and told that because of a clerical error she would have to spend another year behind bars. But Soliah, who served nearly seven years in a plot to kill Los Angeles police officers, is due to be paroled within two weeks, barring unforeseen changes. The issue now is whether Soliah, now Sara Jane Olson, can be supervised on parole in Minnesota, where she lived before being arrested in connection with the 1975 plot to place pipe bombs under police cars in retaliation for a standoff with LAPD officers that left six SLA members dead. Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, said the 62-year-old made the request for supervised parole in Minnesota. Both California and Minnesota corrections officials must approve the request, which is still under review. If approved, Soliah would be part of California's caseload and under the state's jurisdiction, but Minnesota would monitor, supervise and provide parole services for her. "She will know whether her request is approved by the time she is released on parole," Thornton said, adding the department does not provide exact release dates of inmates for safety and security reasons. If her bid is approved, Soliah would be one of more than 1,000 California offenders who are on parole supervision in other states. There are more than 1,400 parolees who served prison time in other states but are being supervised in California. "Parole is about reintegrating prison offenders back into the community," Thornton said. "So if they are in place where they have family support or a job lined up, that increases their chances for success on parole." Even so, it constitutes a small portion of the state's parolees. By law, the vast majority are returned to their county of last legal residence in California, barring extenuating circumstances, such as if a victim lives in proximity to their address. Officials for the Los Angeles Police union have urged state Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown to make Soliah fulfill all the terms of her sentence in California before she is allowed to go home. "We do not believe that the state of Minnesota has a sufficient interest in ensuring that Ms. Soliah does not violate her conditions of parole," union President Paul M. Weber said. "The responsibility to ensure that Ms. Soliah follows each and every requirement of parole is one which should be undertaken by the state of California, not 'outsourced' to another state. Ms. Soliah should be allowed to travel to another state when she fulfills her obligations to California, and not a minute before." Read more. If link has expired, check the website of the article's original news source. |
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