California Parole Agent Joshua Byrd was brutally shot and murdered in an apparent ambush attack by a parolee outside of the CDCR Parole office on July 17, 2025. Our community is reeling in shock and disbelief, and mourning for Agent Byrd’s family and friends.
In the midst of this tragedy, the new law-and-order District Attorney, appointed by the Board of Supervisors in January 2025, chose to place petty politics and posturing over truth and transparency. Predictably, in an effort to bolster her own credibility, she blamed Agent Byrd’s murder on a policy adopted in our office in April 2023 known as Special Directive 23-01.
Special Directive 23-01 applied a new standard of accountability for certain felony cases involving serious injury or harm to a victim. It did not apply to misdemeanors which comprise approximately 66% of all cases processed in the DA’s office. It did not ban the use of all sentencing enhancements. It did require charging deputies to discuss the use of an enhancement in a serious felony case with their supervisor. It did require charging deputies to document that they did have the discussion with their supervisor, and the supervisor approved the enhancement charge…