Gov. Brown Pardons 28 People in LA and Orange Counties

Twenty-eight people convicted of crimes in Los Angeles and Orange counties over the past 50 years were granted pardons Friday by Gov. Jerry Brown.

They were among 112 pardons issued by the governor, a tradition during the holidays. A pardon may be granted to people who have demonstrated exemplary behavior and have lived productive and law-abiding lives following their conviction, and are not given unless they are earned, according to the governor's office.

The pardons were granted to the following Los Angeles and Orange County defendants:

-- Kyle Berwick, who spent a month in jail in Orange County in 2006 for possession of marijuana for sale;

-- Peter Chong, who spent nearly two years in prison in the late 1990s for assault with a deadly weapon;

-- Montgomery Cortes, who served a year in jail in 1990 for forgery;

-- Christopher Allen Crowell, who spent seven months in prison out of Orange County in 1999 for possession of a controlled substance;

-- Darryl Gent, who spent six months in jail in 1994 for possession or purchase of a controlled substance for sale;

-- Javier Maldonado Gonzalez, who spent 100 days in jail in 1987 for transporting a controlled substance for sale;

-- Noel De Jesus Granados, who served six months in jail in 1992 for transporting or selling a controlled substance;

-- Richard Hackney, who served three years probation in the early 1990s for possession of a controlled substance;

-- Gwendolyn Irene Harvey, who spent six months in prison in 1988 for robbery and possession of a controlled substance for sale;

-- Robert Higgins, who spent a year in jail in 1965 for the theft of record players;

-- Richard Hill, who spent three years in prison in the 1960s for robbery;

-- William Lee Horn, who served three years probation in the 1970s for cultivating marijuana;

-- Patty Howard, who spent 30 days in jail in Orange County for food-stamp fraud;

-- Patrick Anthony Ireland, who served nearly two years probation for possession of a controlled substance for sale;

-- John Ernest Kelly, who spent 300 days in jail in Orange County for possession of a controlled substance and marijuana;

-- David Anthony Lambie, who served five years probation in the 1990s for transporting a controlled substance;

-- Brenda Lee Lindsey, who served a year in prison in 1988 for grand theft;

-- Mark Dario Maciel, who served 20 months in prison in the 1980s for assault with a deadly weapon;

-- Leonel Muniz, who spent 19 months in prison out of Orange County in the mid-1990s for robbery;

-- Trino Parra-Barajas, who spent six months in jail in 1974 for transporting or selling a controlled substance;

-- Dana Beth Pope, who served a year in jail in 1997 for possession of a controlled substance for sale;

-- Kathryn Romo, who spent six months in prison in 1995 for possession of a controlled substance for sale;

-- Modesto Valdez Sanchez, who served a year in Orange County jail in 1993 for transporting or selling a controlled substance;

-- Sonya Lynn Smith, who served eight months prison in 2001-02 for public-assistance fraud;

-- Lucy Serrano Solis, who spent a year in prison for possession of a controlled substance;

-- Darryl Storm, who served nearly a year in prison out of Orange County in the 1980s for possession of a controlled substance for sale;

-- Daniel Charles Urnick, who served a year in jail in 1998 for forgery, theft and burglary; and

-- Juan Magallanes Vasquez, who spent 18 months in prison in the 1990s for kidnapping.

Those granted pardons all completed their sentences and the majority were convicted of nonviolent, drug-related crimes, according to the governor's office. All applicants for a pardon who were eligible obtained a certificate of rehabilitation, which is an order from a superior court declaring that a person convicted of a crime is now rehabilitated.

Brown also commuted the sentence of Louis Calderon, who was sentenced in April 2000 to 32 years to life for attempted murder, along with a firearm enhancement, stemming from a shooting carried out by a fellow gang member.

Brown noted that during his time in prison, Calderon has dropped out of gang life, maintained a clean record and has earned "multiple community college degrees and a paralegal certificate," while participating in multiple self-help programs.

Brown commuted his sentence to 22 years to life.