Leonard Jones before he was sentenced for a 2013 attempted murder. Photo: Patience Rodak
OAKLAND, Calif. - The Alameda County District Attorney and the defense attorney for the longest-serving person at Santa Rita Jail are in a showdown over whether Leonard Jones has reformed and should be set free or is still a dangerous criminal and should finish out the remainder of his 59-year sentence for shooting a man in the ankle.
59 years vs. 15 years
The debate:
The two sides are scheduled to meet Friday morning before Alameda County Superior Court Judge Thomas Stevens, who will decide Jones' fate.
Jones' attorney, Daniel Shriro, is arguing that his 43-year-old client, who was convicted of a 2013 attempted murder, has spent long enough at Santa Rita Jail – 13 years – and should be resentenced to a maximum of 15 years in prison for his crime.
Because Jones has already spent 13 years in custody, Shriro is arguing that Jones should be let out now.
Meanwhile, Deputy District Attorney Edward Viera-Ducey is arguing that Jones is still a threat to society and should complete his 59-year sentence, or at minimum, 55 years.
The 2013 crime
The backstory:
The crime the two sides are arguing about stems from when Jones was found guilty of shooting 22-year-old Gbessaykai Massaquoi in the ankle in San Leandro. Massaquoi was the friend of a 16-year-old girl that Jones had asked out, but was turned down.
While Santa Rita Jail is a county jail, Jones has yet to set foot in a California prison because, while he was in custody, he was accused of three other criminal charges, including murder, all of which have been dismissed.
But Jones stayed at Santa Rita Jail while all those legal proceedings played out.
Dangerous criminal
What they're saying:
In his court motion, Viera-Ducey argued that Jones' crime revealed "his comfort and proclivity" for gun violence, and his sentence is "commensurate with the violence, callousness and dangerousness of his crime."
The prosecutor noted that Jones never expressed remorse for shooting the young man and "despite the passage of years, he offers none here at his resentencing."
Viera-Ducey also noted that Jones refused to meet for probation officer interviews ahead of his current resentencing hearing.
Video: Santa Rita Jail deputies acknowledge 120-degree heat in cell
Leonard Jones, who holds the title of being among the longest held in Santa Rita Jail, is working toward reducing his 59-year prison sentence, while simultaneously fighting with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office over what he describes as unfair treatment, including being subjected to 120-degree heat at times in his cell.
Childhood trauma, changed man
The other side:
In his argument for leniency, Shriro made a point to state that he's not going to rehash any of these now-dismissed cases, but rather he wants to focus on why his client has spent enough time in custody for the crime he committed.
Shriro pointed to two laws that he said the judge must take into account as mitigating factors in reducing Jones' sentence: childhood trauma when it's connected to a crime and dismissing enhancements when it is in the interest of justice.
Almost 30 years of Jones' sentence were for gun enhancements.
Most importantly, Shriro said the judge must factor in how traumatic Jones' childhood was, namely when his father murdered his mother when he was 17 years old. It's not an excuse for committing a crime, Shriro said, but it explains why Jones developed poor coping mechanisms, such as shooting someone when he was angry.
Shriro said he would have liked to supplement his argument to show that Jones is eligible for a lesser sentence under the Racial Justice Act, but he has been twice denied that ability.
Still, Shriro said he believes that Jones' case was charged more aggressively because Jones is Black, and his treatment is different at Santa Rita Jail because he is Black.
Specifically, Shriro cited Jones' alleged mistreatment at Santa Rita Jail, pointing to examples when Jones complained of being placed in an excessively hot cell that the jail officials have said is all in his head, despite video evidence that indicates otherwise.
Jones has filed dozens of formal, written grievances about his stay at Santa Rita, which Shriro points out is actually a huge step in his client's growth and maturity – instead of acting violently when he doesn't get what he wants.
"He is a dramatically different person from the man I met back when I was first appointed to represent him" in 2016, Shriro wrote. "He has become a better person as a result of his efforts. He has also learned a better way to address conflict that I am confident he will take with him into the world when he leaves custody."