Former SLA member leaves prison

Kathleen Soliah, a former member of the radical Symbionese Liberation Army, was released on parole this week from a California women's prison after serving about six years behind bars for her role in a plot to kill Los Angeles police officers by blowing up their patrol cars.

The white-haired convict, who has changed her name to Sara Jane Olson, had been sentenced to 12 years in prison. Like most California inmates, Soliah earned credit against her sentence for working while in prison. She served on a maintenance crew that swept and cleaned the main yard of the Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla, prison officials said.

The 61-year-old Soliah, who was released Monday, must now serve a three-year parole, although prison officials declined to provide the conditions of her release.

Reached at her family's home in Palmdale on Thursday, Soliah refused to comment. Her husband, Dr. Gerald Peterson, who was also at the house, said only that he was "relieved."

Soliah's attorney, Shawn Chapman Holley, said, "We're thrilled she's out and can return to her family. For someone who was not a danger or a threat to society, it was six years too long."

Los Angeles police see Soliah in far harsher light.

She "attempted to murder LAPD officers by bombing two police cars," said Tim Sands, president of the Police Protective League, which represents the city's 9,300 rank-and-file officers. "She needs to serve her full time in prison for these crimes and does not deserve time off for working in prison. Criminals who attempt to murder police officers should not be able to escape justice simply because they have good lawyers."
Former SLA member leaves prison - Los Angeles Times

Kind of on the line on this one but I do wonder one thing: Did her current husband know of her past before she got busted?

Have a good one!:jointsmile:

Is this the woman who spent some 25 years or so as a fugitive before getting caught or turning herslf in?

I'm sort of on the fence too. Part of locking people up is punishment, and part is keeping them away from society if they are a danger. By the time a person is 60, most of the fire is out of them and they aren't likely to be much of a danger anymore. So there's not much sense in keeping her locked up for public safety. But if she tried to murder police officers, she needed to serve seme time for punishment, even if it was a long time ago, and she wouldn't do the same thing today.