A man convicted of murdering a 21-year-old in front of a West Sacramento club 22 years ago has been denied parole.
Alfredo Morales was denied parole for the maximum of four years on Tuesday during a parole hearing at Salinas Valley Prison, a news release from Yolo County District Attorney Jeff W. Reisig's office stated.
Morales shot and killed Gregory Rodriguez in front of the 600 Club in the Broderick area of West Sacramento in 1986.
As Rodriguez "crumpled to the sidewalk," Morales fired five more shots hitting him in the head, neck and chest, parole hearings Commissioner Hollis Gillingham said Tuesday.
Morales was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 32 years to life in prison.
Rodriguez's two brothers, Eugene and Valentino Rodriguez, spoke to the parole board Tuesday and asked that Morales not be released.
They told board members that just one year before their brother's death, another brother, Albert, was killed in the Broderick area. The two murder trials occurred at the same time in separate Yolo County courtrooms, sending their mother running from trial to trial, the release states.
The brothers described Gregory Rodriguez as a "good, compassionate person."
"We worked hard and had some money. Gregory would buy lunch for those who weren't as fortunate," Valentino Rodriguez said during the hearing. "He was just a good person."
Gregory Rodriguez was never in trouble with the law and wanted to be a CHP officer, according to county documents.
Law enforcement photos show his CHP baseball cap in a pool of blood after his body was removed from the murder scene, the release states.
The parole board denied the request for parole after deliberating for 20 minutes.
Gillingham said parole was denied because Morales was an "unreasonable risk and threat to public safety."
Morales murdered Rodriguez while on parole for another crime. While serving time in prison for that crime, he was involved in the murder of another inmate and stabbed in another fight, she said.
Gillingham described Rodriguez's murder as a "heinous and atrocious" and said it showed an "exceptionally callous disregard for human life."
District Attorney Reisig said in a written statement that the parole denial exemplifies the work his office is doing on behalf of crime victims.
"We will be back with the family in four years before the parole board to ensure that Morales remains in prison where he will be unable to hurt another innocent person in our society," Reisig said.
Call The Bee's Niesha Lofing, (916) 321-1270.
