As noted in previous posts, no district attorney works harder than Alameda County (California) District Attorney Pamela Price at excusing instead of prosecuting crime. It is also a fact that Price is equally diligent and forceful in attempting to spring convicted felons, regardless of their crime, from prison under the mantra they have “reformed.”’
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Alameda County DA Pamela Price Believes a Man’s Life Is Worth … Five Years, Tops
James Mladinich was 27 years old when Darrell Shepherd murdered him during a 1995 robbery attempt. Mladinich was sitting in his car when Shepherd shot him in the head. Originally sentenced to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole, at the insistence of the Alameda County DA Office in June 2023, Shepherd’s sentence was reduced to second-degree murder, followed by his being granted parole in January 2024. Alameda County Senior Assistant District Attorney Kwixhuan Maloof stated at Shepherd’s parole hearing:
“I should say it is especially commendable that Mr Shepherd did not give up on himself when the government did give up on him and initially sought death and then successfully [obtained] life without the possibility of parole,” he said.
“I’ve reviewed his parole plans, which include going into transitional housing. He has support from his brother and support from other relatives, and a lady friend. With those comments, I support his release on parole,” Maloof concluded.
James Mladinich was unavailable for comment, much in the same fashion as he has been unavailable to be a father to his daughter for the past 29 years.
A side note on Maloof. In March 2024, Alameda County Judge Thomas Reardon granted a motion on behalf of defendant Jason Fletcher to remove Price’s office from prosecuting his case due to extreme bias. Fletcher, a former police officer, is accused of manslaughter in the 2020 death of Steven Taylor during a shoplifting incident in which Taylor stole items from a Walmart and was confronted by Fletcher, the incident ending with Fletcher shooting Taylor to death. The ruling follows another case several weeks earlier in which a judge disqualified Price’s office from prosecuting Amilcar “Butch” Ford, one of Price’s former employees.
Price alleged that Ford broke the law when he filed a declaration while still employed by Price that supported (Fletcher’s attorney, Michael) Rains’ first bid to disqualify the district attorney from Fletcher’s case. In the sworn declaration, Ford described multiple conversations he had with Kwixuan Maloof, then the head of Price’s Public Accountability Unit, including one instance where Maloof allegedly said, “I came here to charge cops. They better be ready. They better Google me,” according to the court declaration.
Apparently, justice plays fast and loose with her blindfold in Alameda County.
Back to members of Price’s office giving it their all to reduce the prison population. In 2004, four months after being released from state prison, Terrance Varner murdered Clarence Ogden by shooting him in the back after an argument. Ogden was 18.
In a March 2024 parole hearing for Varner, Alameda County Assistant District Attorney Dana Drusinsky argued for Varner’s parole thusly.
“[I]t was really great to be able to see Mr Varner answer these questions and get to hear some of his experiences directly from him,” Drusinsky said.
“I think he’s done a lot of positive programming, I love hearing which programs affect people the most, so it seems like ‘No More Tears’ had a positive effect on Mr Varner.”
“I told myself before coming here, I would end my closing on a very positive note. First of all … if the commissioners find that Mr Varner is not suitable for parole, I do think he is very close. I think he’s done well in prison and I think it’s really the insight as to the commitment offense and, maybe, a little bit of the remorse he spoke about – I think that could be clarified a bit more. But I think he’s close. I think he’s doing well.”
No. Seriously. An assistant district attorney not only talks in such a Valley Girl manner but also said all that about a man who believed an appropriate method for settling an argument was shooting the other person in the back as he was running away. But it’s okay because he’s kind of super sorry, I think.
The November recall election for Pamela Price cannot come soon enough.
