Crime Victims United to California Governor: Survivor Stories Are NOT Political Rhetoric

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Crime Victims United today issued the following statement in response to remarks from the Governor's Office characterizing concerns surrounding the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation's lawsuit challenging new California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) regulations as "political rhetoric."

Earlier this week, Crime Victims United stood alongside survivors and families from across California as the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation announced a lawsuit seeking to halt implementation of new regulations that could affect the process for individuals serving Life Without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP) sentences.

Following the announcement, a spokesperson for the Governor's Office told ABC10 News: "California believes protecting public safety means reducing future victimization through evidence-based policies—not political rhetoric."

In response, Crime Victims United released the following statement: "We are deeply disappointed by the Governor's Office's response dismissing our efforts to hold CDCR accountable as 'political rhetoric.'

This week, we stood shoulder to shoulder with some of the strongest people we have ever known—California survivors who courageously shared the heartbreaking stories of how violent crime forever changed their lives. They spoke not as politicians, but as mothers, fathers, spouses, siblings, and children who have lived through unimaginable loss. Their stories are not political rhetoric. They are lived experiences. They are the voices of Californians who continue to carry the weight of violent crime every single day.

These lived experiences cannot be ignored or minimized by policymakers making decisions from government offices based solely on studies, reports, and data. Data has value, but it should never replace the voices of the very people who have lived through these tragedies and continue to live with their realities every day. The concerns raised this week, and those reflected in the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation's lawsuit, are real. They deserve to be heard, understood, and taken seriously, not dismissed with a single sentence.

We respectfully invite Governor Newsom and members of his administration to meet with the survivors and families who stood with us this week. Listen to their stories. Hear their concerns. Understand what is at stake for those who were promised that Life Without the Possibility of Parole meant exactly that.

You may not ultimately agree with every position we take, but these families deserve more than having their lived experiences characterized as 'political rhetoric.' Our survivors deserve better. Our communities deserve better. California residents deserve better."

The organization also sent a formal letter requesting a meeting. You can view that letter here.

Crime Victims United of California is a nonpartisan, statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to elevating, training, and supporting crime victims, survivors, and their families. For more than four decades, the organization has empowered survivors to become effective advocates for victims' rights through education, leadership development, legislative engagement, and community outreach. Crime Victims United works to ensure that the voices of victims and survivors remain at the forefront of California's criminal justice system while advocating for policies that promote accountability, community safety, transparency, and justice for all Californians. Learn more at www.crimevictimsunited.com