A California judge appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom is under scrutiny after she released a Venezuelan national following a burglary arrest and later allowed him to remain on pretrial home detention despite an alleged breach of its terms. The man is now accused of fatally stabbing 68-year-old Todd Stewart, prompting renewed criticism of California’s sanctuary and pretrial-release policies.

Judge Nichelle Holmes had previously said in an interview with the University of San Francisco, her alma mater, that justice can sometimes mean “dismissal”. The article identifies the suspect as Marcos Iriarte-Valdez and says he had a prior arrest record; the allegations against him have not been proven in court.