“Son of Sam” serial killer David Berkowitz, who unleashed a reign of terror across New York City in the summers of 1976 and 1977, murdering six innocent people and wounding seven with a .44 caliber handgun, could soon walk free thanks to two radical parole bills currently moving through Albany.
These dangerous measures are being heavily promoted by activist groups backed by far-left billionaire George Soros. As first reported by the New York Post, the Hungarian-born financier has directed more than $7.1 million since 2016 through his Open Society Foundations and allied groups to organizations in the “People’s Campaign for Parole Justice.”
These resources have supported years of relentless lobbying for parole reform bills, including earlier versions introduced as far back as 2017 and 2018.
The Hungarian-born financier has also poured over $40 million into soft-on-crime initiatives across America since 2015–2016, aggressively supporting district attorney races, activist organizations, and legislative efforts that put criminals ahead of law-abiding citizens. A significant portion of this strategy has targeted the state.
The results of this decades-long campaign have been nothing short of catastrophic, particularly in major cities across blue states. Soros-backed policies, implemented through progressive district attorneys he has funded, have delivered bail reform, reduced prosecutions, and softer sentencing. The outcome is quite clear: these policies are not working. They have instead created chaos and disorder.
Thanks to progressive district attorneys heavily funded by Soros, many repeat offenders are now quickly processed at the police station, rarely seeing the inside of an actual jail cell, and released back onto the streets with nothing more than a court summons.
This reckless soft-on-crime approach has created a nonstop revolving-door criminal justice system that allows dangerous criminals to roam free with disturbing frequency, making cities across America significantly less safe.
The city has been hit especially hard. It has suffered severe spikes in violent crime, subways plagued by random attacks, brazen retail theft, and a growing sense of lawlessness that has left everyday life far more tense and dangerous.
Retailers are forced to pass the massive costs from rampant shoplifting directly onto consumers, driving prices even higher at stores. What was sold as “equity and compassion” has instead produced fear, disorder, and declining quality of life for ordinary residents.
The two bills in question are the Fair and Timely Parole Act (S159), sponsored by far-left Senator Julia Salazar, and the Elder Parole bill (S9846), sponsored by Senator Cordell Cleare. Both would dramatically overhaul the state’s parole system.
New York State Senate Bill S159, the Fair and Timely Parole Act, effectively guarantees parole for convicted criminals, forcing the Parole Board to grant release unless it can prove an inmate poses a current and “unreasonable” risk.
New York State Senate Bill S9846, the so-called Elder Parole bill, would create an automatic “elder parole” system, granting parole hearings to inmates aged 55 and older who have served at least 15 years — regardless of how brutal or heinous their original crimes were.
The implications are chilling. Not only could “Son of Sam” killer David Berkowitz walk free, but John Lennon’s assassin Mark David Chapman and other notorious killers might also become eligible.
Even Berkowitz’s own sister has publicly opposed his release, stressing the enduring pain inflicted on victims’ families.
New Yorkers deserve leaders who put public safety first, not ideological experiments and progressive pet projects bankrolled by billionaires.
As these woke parole bills advance in Albany, citizens must demand real accountability from their legislators. You can try to hide the reality of rising crime, but everyday residents see it, hear about it, or have experienced it firsthand.
