Merced murderer granted early parole, victim's family hoping for Governor Newsom to repeal

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- It's been 14 years since Diane Reid-Romero's body was found in the backyard pool of her Merced home, and the pain remains for her family.

The beloved Peterson Elementary school teacher was stabbed to death in her bedroom by her husband, Rodolfo Romero, while their two sons slept in another room.

Early last month, Rodolfo Romero was granted an early parole by the parole board and fate now sits with Governor Gavin Newsom.

"This is reliving it all over again, knowing that he can walk free after what he's done," said Sharon Reid, Diane's sister.

Diane's sister says the parole board's decision has brought back horrific memories of the murder, and the hole that remains from his sister's loss.

"She had her clothes laid out the night before that she was going to go to school the next day, and the real horror was knowing that the children who were waiting for her at Peterson never got to see her again," said Reid.

Rodolfo Romero pleaded no contest to second degree murder in 2012 and was sentenced to 16 years to life in prison.

He had his first parole hearing a year and a half ago and was denied the chance to go free.

Then, last month he was brought back for a second hearing, was granted parole, and deemed a low to moderate risk to the public.

"In this case, the defendant, he did not have any rule violations since 2016. That is something that they can consider. They also said that he did I believe what they termed it as substantive programming," said Merced County District Attorney Nicole Silveira.

Silvera is arguing against Romero's release.

"We understand that the board of probation has their own standard, but when someone is sentenced to 16 to life for a murder of someone, they should serve at least that minimum sentence," said Silveira.

Diane's sister says the parole board's decision has brought back horrific memories of the murder and the hole that remains from his sister's loss.

A memorial garden still grows at Peterson Elementary in honor of the lasting impact Diane had.

"There is a student who didn't have food to eat, and his mom had turned to drugs, and so if she wasn't at school, he wouldn't get to eat. The first thing that I thought about when she died was that student," says Reid.

Diane's two sons chose to change their last names, following the incident. And now, both are following in their mother's footsteps, working in education.

Now, as the family waits for the possibility of her killer going free, the district attorney's office is looking at ways to convince Governor Newsom to reverse the decision to grant parole.

"There is an option for our office to write a letter to the governor urging him to reject it, but it has to be based on an error of law or an error of fact that occurred at the hearing," says Silveira.

"We shouldn't have to be victimized all over again. There's a place for people who have done what he has done, and it is not outside in the general population. I just want Governor Gavin Newsom to understand how important my sister was to this community. My family, and that the punishment does not fit the crime at all," says Reid.

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