Last San Franciscan on death row gets possibility of parole in resenting deal

The only San Francisco inmate on California's death row had his sentence reduced to life in prison with the possibility of parole Tuesday in a plea deal with prosecutors.

Superior Court Judge Loretta M. Giorgi reduced Clifford Bolden's death sentence to 47 years to life after his federal defense attorneys made an agreement with District Attorney Chesa Boudin to forgo their client's appellate arguments and habeas corpus petitions.

"This settlement recognizes the failures of the criminal justice system, while also acknowledging that Mr. Bolden, now 65 years old, is a reformed person who has not received a disciplinary write-up in over 25 years," Deputy Federal Public Defender Jonathan C. Aminoff said in an interview Tuesday.

In a statement, Boudin said the deal comes at a time when more people agree with him that the death penalty is "inconsistent with the values of a humane society."

However, California voters have rejected every opportunity to eliminate the death penalty, and the state Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld its constitutionality in recent years.

"My office has not sought and will not seek the death penalty, and I am pleased that we have been able to ensure that no one previously sentenced in San Francisco will remain on death row either," Boudin said.

Bolden has been incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison alongside more than 700 other death row inmates since a jury convicted him in 1991 of first degree murder with special circumstances of robbery-murder and robbery with enhancements for use of a weapon. Superior Court Judge Raymond D. Williamson sentenced him to death after the jury returned guilty verdicts.

According to court filings, Bolden robbed and stabbed to death Henry Michael Pedersen, 46, after picking him up from a bar in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood in 1986. Bolden wrapped Pedersen's body in a bedspread and left him in a bathtub in Pedersen's apartment. Police found Bolden's fingerprints on the bathtub and on wine bottles in the apartment as well as some of Pedersen's belongings in Bolden's possession.

The California Supreme Court in 2002 and again in 2009 upheld Bolden's death sentence, rejecting his claims that his trial was decided by a partial jury.

In 2002 Bolden's attorney, Jeanne Keevan-Lynch, under appointment by the state high court, contended the excusal of four prospective jurors who said they opposed or had mixed feelings about the death penalty violated his right to a fair trial. In 2009, Bolden's attorneys claimed ineffective assistance of counsel because the attorneys appointed to represent him at trial, Martin Lurie and co-counsel Michael Gaines, failed to excuse a juror who had a prior relationship with the victim. Lurie wrote in court filings that neither he nor Gaines were aware of any connection between that juror and the victim, and that if he had known of grounds to make a challenge for cause he would have done so.

Superior Court Judge Mary C. Morgan was appointed by the high court in Bolden's appeals to make findings on whether that juror was personally acquainted with the victim and whether that relationship swayed the result of the sentencing phase. The high court concluded those claims lacked merit based on Morgan's findings, and upheld his sentence.

Bolden has since filed several state and federal writs of habeas corpus petitions, one of which alleges he suffered from schizophrenia at the time of his crimes and that the jury was not aware of that.

In his motion seeking resentencing, Boudin said he agreed with Bolden's attorneys to reduce the sentence because it was consistent with Gov. Gavin Newsom's moratorium on the death penalty -- a penalty Boudin wrote costs "between $50,000 and $90,000 annually per inmate." He said he also believes there are no public safety concerns with the sentence reduction, which would make Bolden eligible for parole in 2033, when he's 79.

Boudin also wrote that the jury was unaware Bolden had schizophrenia at the time he murdered Pedersen. Boudin cited a post-conviction expert who said the condition made Bolden lash out violently to nonthreatening circumstances.

Aminoff said Tuesday that the result of this resolution would allow Bolden to "have a future opportunity to demonstrate to a parole board that he is not a threat to anyone and deserves to spend his remaining years outside of prison walls."

Eugene D. Sweeters, the trial prosecutor who secured Bolden's death sentence, did not return requests for comment.