Parole board whistleblower exposes unsettling truth about Gavin Newsoms relaxed system: People are not safe

A former California parole agent is raising alarms about what he claims is dangerously lax oversight of parolees under the state’s corrections system — warning the lack of monitoring could put the public at risk.The ex-agent, who spent 15 years with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, says supervision of offenders fell apart during the COVID-19 pandemic and never fully recovered, KCRA 3 reported.His allegations are now sparking fresh concerns about the state’s parole policies under Gov.Gavin Newsom.

The California Post has reached out to the governor’s office for comment.The former parole officer — who worked for six years in the San Francisco parole office — spoke anonymously out of fear of retaliation, but said he felt compelled to go public about what he described as a deeply flawed system, according to the local news outlet.“As a sex offender agent, I had GPS tracking information, so I could see pretty much where they were at any given time, but beyond that, what they were doing at those moments, I have no idea,” the former agent told KCRA 3.The whistleblower said the problems began when pandemic restrictions forced parole officers to supervise offenders mostly by phone rather than face-to-face meetings.“It was literally, ‘Are you abiding by the law today? Yes? Fantastic,'” the former agent explained.“Whatever they told us is exactly what we would put in the system.”Even after COVID-era restrictions were lifted and agents returned to fieldwork, he claims they were instructed to avoid traditional enforcement duties such as conducting investigations or making arrests related to parole violations.According to the former officer, that hands-off approach could create the illusion that the system is working.“Logically speaking, if you do not actively investigate, pursue, and arrest these individuals, and we are the best tasked to do that … well, now rehabilitation appears that it’s working and recidivism is ...