SF judge lets serial car burglar out of jail after less than 4 months, I-Team investigates
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A San Francisco Superior Court judge went through with his plea offer Thursday for a serial car burglar, ordering him released from jail after less than four months. San Francisco DA Brooke Jenkins took this case very seriously. Instead of the General Felonies Unit, she assigned this to a major crimes prosecutor and pushed for a two-year state prison sentence. It didn't work.
Unlike judges in past hearings for repeat car burglar Robert Sonza, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Bruce E. Chan denied our request for a camera in the courtroom at Thursday's hearing - for video or still pictures. And he went through with his offer. In exchange for guilty pleas to five felonies -- Receiving Stolen Property, Accessory After the Fact, Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, Concealed Firearm in a Vehicle, Possession of Ammunition - Sonza will be released after less than four months in county jail.
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Dan Noyes: "Sylvia, with Sonza's history of reoffending, how is this proper?"
Sylvia Nguyen: "I said what I had to say on the record."
The I-Team's Dan Noyes tried to discuss the case with Sonza's public defender, Sylvia Nguyen. He's been on probation several times and reoffended. I wanted to ask what will be different this time.
Noyes: "People are kind of upset what's happening here. How is this proper given his history of reoffending?"
Nguyen: "I think the court made a very clear record."
Noyes: "Which was what?"
Nguyen: "The court made a very clear record. You were in there. We made a clear record as well, so, thank you."
Noyes: "Is that all you have to say?"
Nguyen: "That's all I have to say. Thank you."
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As part of the plea offer, Robert Sonza had to admit a string of felonies over the years - starting with domestic violence in 2019, several burglary convictions, evading an officer, and resisting arrest. Sonza also had to admit he "was on probation... when the crime was committed" and that his "prior performance on probation... was unsatisfactory."
But during Thursday's hearing, Judge Chan said, "It's important to be smart on crime, not just tough on crime."
He went against the Adult Probation Department presentence report that called for state prison time and ordered Sonza to be released on probation. As part of the judge's plan, he promised to personally monitor Sonza's progress and if he reoffends, Sonza will face a maximum sentence of three years, eight months in state prison.
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins told us, "That's this case, and I made my commitment after his earlier cases that we would make sure that we held him accountable."
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Jenkins is growing more vocal about what she sees as failures in the criminal justice system, saying, "I think we have a culture at the Hall of Justice here in San Francisco of judges viewing property crime as less significant, finding opportunities to not hear trials and to send people back out to sadly use the courthouse as a revolving door."
The judge on this case is Bruce E. Chan.
He's 68 years old, did his undergrad at Stanford, law school at UC Davis, worked as a San Francisco Public Defender for 18 years, before Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed him to the bench in 2009. He's been re-elected twice; his current term expires in 2029.
Former SFPD Officer Riley Bandy told the I-Team, "It seems like in the 10 years I was there, you know, trying really hard, the city only got worse."
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Sonza has been convicted of running from police several times, and Bandy got injured when Sonza slammed into his patrol car on April 27, 2022. He sped away in a stolen car suspected in several auto burglaries that day. Sonza rammed into houses, sideswiped cars, slammed into another causing injuries. Sonza faced a slew of charges but in a plea deal with a different judge, all of them got dismissed except a single count of "Evading an Officer."
The Robert Sonza saga has driven Officer Bandy to retire. He worries about officers still on the force.
"Then the question is, is that going to motivate police officers then to work harder? I don't see how that's possible. But oh, boy, San Francisco, I'm just fed up there. I'm just fed up."
Sonza may be getting out of San Francisco County Jail any time now, but he faces a $200,000 warrant out of Contra Costa County for fleeing an officer and resisting arrest. The DA's office there tells me they are making arrangements to take Sonza into custody.
Take a look at more stories by the ABC7 News I-Team.
