The last of three men convicted of hijacking a school bus full of California students for an attempted $5 million ransom in 1976 in what a prosecutor termed “the biggest mass abduction in U.S. history” is being freed by the state’s parole board.
Frederick Woods, 70, had previously been rejected parole 17 times by different panels until two commissioners recommended his release in March. On Tuesday, Governor Gavin Newsom requested the board to rethink its decision. But the board upheld that choice. Due to Woods’ lack of a murder conviction, the governor was unable to prevent his release and could only request that the parole board look into the situation further.
When they abducted 26 children and their bus driver at Chowchilla, some 125 miles southeast of San Francisco, Woods and his two accomplices, brothers Richard and James Schoenfeld, came from well-to-do families in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The kids, who ranged in age from 5 to 14, and their bus driver were dumped in an old moving van east of San Francisco with minimal access to air conditioning, light, water, food, or restroom facilities. More than a day later, the victims were able to dig their way out.
“You don’t have a strong sense of time when you’re a small child. According to survivor Jennifer Brown Hyde of “48 Hours,” there was no sunshine “in 2019. “So, it was impossible to determine whether it was day or night. We were running low on food and water, and the roof was collapsing. Just a desperate position, really.”
When investigators made the connection between Woods and the quarry where the vehicle had been buried—his father owned the location—Woods, who was 24 at the time, turned became a person of interest in the investigation.
Following that, authorities investigated Woods’ father’s estate and discovered a wealth of information, including a draught ransom letter, according to “48 Hours.”
There were issued arrest warrants. Woods and James Schoenfeld left California while Richard Schoenfeld handed himself up. When they were all detained, they entered guilty pleas to a number of the offences, but not to the eight counts of bodily injury, which would have resulted in life in prison, as reported by “48 Hours.”
However, they were all convicted guilty of all counts and given life sentences without the chance of release.
The men’s life sentences were lowered to be eligible for parole in 1980 by an appeal court that included state judge William Newsom, the father of the current governor. After he resigned in 2011, he advocated for their release, pointing out that no one was physically hurt badly during the abduction.
In 2012, an appeals court ordered Richard’s release, and in 2015, James was granted parole by then-Gov. Jerry Brown.
But according to Newsom, Woods “continued to engage in financial related misbehaviour in jail,” using a fake telephone to provide business advise on operating a car dealership, a Christmas tree farm, and a gold mining operation.
In her opposition to Woods’ release, Madera County District Attorney Sally Moreno said that Woods’ actions “continue to illustrate that he is about the money.” In addition, Sheriff Ed Bates said in 2019 that he believed Woods to be “a psychopath.”
After the verdict, Moreno expressed her frustration and anger, saying that “justice has been mocked in Madera County.” She also expressed her fear for society, saying that “if you can kidnap a busload of school children, abandon them buried alive and still get out of prison after committing that crime and spending your time in prison flouting the law, what does that say for the state of society?”
Although Woods was unable to attend in person on Tuesday, he claimed at his parole hearing in March that his earlier transgressions were motivated by his parents’ trust fund, while his more recent ones were motivated by his desire for money to gain their approval.
“I didn’t need the cash. I desired the cash “Woods spoke about the attempted ransom.
The parole board acknowledged that Woods “has showed a change in character for the good” and “remains a low risk, and if released from jail he presents no danger or threat to the community,” according to his attorney, Dominique Banos, on Wednesday.
Four victims or their family argued that Woods’ behaviour in jail demonstrates that he still considers himself as privileged, and three former convicts who spent time with Woods pleaded with parole authorities to release him. Many of Woods’ victims have in the past backed his release.
The youngsters battled to escape as a flashlight and lights went out and “the homemade, dungeonous coffin was sinking in,” according to Lynda Carrejo Labendeira, who was 10 at the time.
She told the board, “I don’t get to pick the random memories every time I see a vehicle like the one we were brought in.
She said, “Insomnia keeps me up all night.” I don’t sleep in order to completely avoid having any nightmares.
When Jennifer Brown Hyde, then 9 years old, described “the lifelong repercussions of being buried alive and being transported about in a vehicle for 11 hours without food, drink, or a restroom in over 100-degree temperatures,” she was speaking about the impact of being buried alive.
She informed the board that “his thinking is still wicked and he is out to obtain what he wants.” “I want him to spend the rest of his life in jail, just as I have spent my whole life suffering with the PTSD because of his entitlement mentality.”
Though her family is unhappy, she remarked on Wednesday that it is “time to finish this chapter and continue enjoying the beautiful life I have been given.” As “real survivors and not victims,” she lauded the other captives.
Woods is deserving of consideration, according to Newsom, since he was just 24 when the crime was done and because he is now an old man. He said that Woods, who had majored in police at a small college, has made efforts to better himself while inside.
Other survivors discussed the psychological effects of the abduction in the 2019 “48 Hours” programme.
After the abduction, Larry Park admitted to CBS News’ David Begnaud that he started acting out. When he was 15, his parents sent him to an institution for young offenders out of concern that he may be violent.
He said, “By the time I was 21, I started doing meth.” “I was a crack smoker. I was consuming acid. And I was only irritated.”