'Second chance' bill goes to governor

SANTA FE – Legislation that would ensure earlier parole hearings for teenagers convicted of first-degree murder passed the House on Monday and is on the desk of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

The House voted 37-25 along partisan lines to approve Senate Bill 64, which entitles children convicted before they are 18 to a parole hearing - and, potentially, parole - after 20 or 25 years in prison, depending on the initial sentence.

Andrea Reeb, R-Clovis, was among those opposing the bill. She also lobbied against early parole for convicted teen killers as district attorney for Curry and Roosevelt counties.

Reeb said Tuesday it's unclear if the governor plans to sign the bill.

If the bill becomes law, Reeb said the teen convicted of killing two Clovis-Carver Public Library workers in 2017 will be eligible for parole in 2042, when he is 41 years old. "I can only hope he gets denied parole," she said on Tuesday.

Nathaniel Jouett was 16 when he opened fire in the library, injuring four people in addition to killing Krissie Carter and Wanda Walters. His original sentence would have made him eligible for parole in 2051.

"I feel like he was already sentenced pretty lightly for what he did," said Wanda's daughter, Mandie Walters, in a 2021 interview. "My thinking is if we're trusting the justice system, why aren't we trusting what the system has already decided?"

Another Clovis teenage killer, Arnell VanDuyne, will be eligible for parole immediately if the governor signs SB64 into law. VanDuyne, then 16, killed his adoptive mother, Norma Young, with a baseball bat in July 2001.

The bill "is like a slap in the face," said Norma's husband Paul Young last year just before lawmakers rejected a similar bill. "They're trying to make us victims again."

The bill would not ensure parole for those convicted, but it would provide parole hearings earlier than in their original sentence.

The House debate on Monday lasted about three hours and highlighted the differences between Republicans and Democrats on violent crime and gun violence.

Democrats argued the legislation gives children who may have acted out of passion or immaturity an opportunity to be rehabilitated and leave prison to become useful contributors to society.

"This bill is about a second chance," said Rep. Gail Chasey, D-Albuquerque, one of four Democrat sponsors of SB 64.

House Republicans countered there are some cases in which there should be no second chance and that such potential releases from prison further hurt bereaved family members and friends.

The bill "is not good for communities or grieving parents," said Stefani Lord, R-Sandia Park.

If the governor signs the legislation, it will affect about 75 people.

Maddy Hayden, a spokeswoman for the governor, wrote in an email the bill was still being studied by Lujan Grisham.

"We're still evaluating this proposal, as it is critical that the right balance is struck between the rights of victims and their families and the chance for youthful violent offenders to be rehabilitated," Hayden wrote. "To that end, we continue to have conversations with victims and their advocates as well as criminal justice advocates, which have been ongoing since last year."

Robert Nott of The Santa Fe New Mexican contributed to this report.