The state parole board on Friday denied release for a woman who opened fire on a San Carlos elementary school as a teen in 1979, killing two people and injuring nine others.
The parole request of Brenda Spencer, 62, who infamously cited “I don’t like Mondays” as the reason for her rampage at Cleveland Elementary School 46 years ago, was rejected for the sixth time.
Spencer is eligible for parole again in 2028. She is imprisoned at the California Institution for Women in Chino.
#UPDATE Brenda Spencer, also known as the "I hate Mondays" killer, was denied release for the sixth time after a Board of Parole hearing Friday that included three victim statements and perspective from the DA's Office. t.co/2zxjLMmriP
— ABC 10News San Diego (@10News) February 21, 2025The decision to deny release for Spencer came after a parole hearing that included three victim statements and objections from the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office. During its deliberations, the board considered new elder and youthful parole laws that could have opened the door for her release.
District Attorney Summer Stephan called Spencer’s acts a “brazen crime (that) rippled through the community in San Diego at the time and it continues to hold a place of infamy in the history of mass shootings in our nation.
“While new laws are in place that can potentially speed up releases for individuals who were convicted as minors, as well as inmates who are over 50 years old, our position is that the totality of the horrific circumstances of this crime and this case do not warrant release and we are gratified that the Parole Board agreed with our position.”
In 1979, student Brenda Spencer shot dead two adults and wounded eight children at a school in San Diego. When asked by police why she did it, she replied: "I don't like Mondays". pic.twitter.com/N06lfl04OW
— Creepy (@creepydotorg) August 21, 2023On Monday morning, Jan. 29, 1979, Spencer began shooting from her house at children waiting for their principal, Burton Wragg, 53, to open the gates to Cleveland Elementary.
She injured eight children, including the first victim, Cam Miller, 9, who she fired upon because he was wearing her favorite color, blue.
Spencer shot and killed Wragg as he and teacher Daryl Barnes tried to help the youngsters. She also killed custodian Mike Suchar, 56, as he attempted to pull a student to safety and wounded San Diego police Officer Robert Robb, 28, as he arrived in response to the emergency call.
After firing 36 times, Spencer barricaded herself inside her home for several hours. While there, she spoke by telephone to a reporter, explaining that she began shooting at the school because “I don’t like Mondays. This livens up the day.”
Despite her age, prosecutors charged Spencer as an adult. She pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon, and on April 4, 1980, a day after she turned 18, she was sentenced to concurrent terms of 25 years to life in prison.
Spencer became eligible for parole in 1993. The state denied her then, and again in 2001, 2005, 2009 and 2022. She is often regarded as the first high-profile school shooter.
Cleveland Elementary closed in 1983, though the San Diego Unified School District held on to the property for years until deciding to sell it in 2015.
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