Wheatland family, police chief protest early release of woman convicted in fatal DUI hit-and-run ...Middle East

WHEATLAND -- Kenneth Glass' family can only feel shattered by the selfish decision of a stranger as they look lovingly at photos of him and touch the small pieces of his motorcycle picked up by his mother's hands. 

Less than two years after a fatal hit-and-run crash took Kenneth's life in Wheatland, the convicted drunk driver responsible has now been released from prison. 

The crash happened on Sept. 12, 2023, when Kenneth was riding his motorcycle to celebrate his new job and what was supposed to be a fresh start for himself and his family. 

"He just said, 'I'm going to go for a ride probably 20, 30 minutes.' He was three minutes from home on his joy ride," said Kenneth's stepfather, Stephen Barnes. 

Kenneth was hit by a pickup truck driven by Clara Ann DeLong, who was 24 at the time, along Spenceville Road. 

DeLong was not injured and ran away from the scene. Wheatland police say she hid out at her home nearby until she was arrested there. She was charged with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury, and hit-and-run. 

"You know you could say it was an accident, but it really wasn't. It was through negligence and her choices that a man's life was lost," said Donald Glass, Kenneth's uncle. 

DeLong was released from prison on February 19, 2025, on parole. She served about a third of her four-year sentence. 

"Her early release is like just pulling the band-aid off the wound," said Maria Glass-Barnes, Kenneth's mother. "And we were only notified a week before. So yes, very angry. I don't think it's right, I don't think it's just." 

In January 2024, DeLong was actually sentenced for her crimes at Wheatland Union High School in front of its student body, in a rare but moving hearing that was meant to show students the real-life consequences of driving drunk. 

But today, her family is left feeling that DeLong's story now signals that the consequences of this crime are not steep enough. 

"What kind of a message does that send to the public, and the youth, honestly?" Maria said. 

Kenneth's family says he was a family man -- a father to three daughters, a devoted husband and a "borderline genius" who could do anything his engineer-wired brain set out to do. 

His daughters are left without a father to walk them down the aisle, walk them through life, or walk through the front door at the end of the day. 

Maria says Kenneth's middle child has special needs and the two had a special bond. She's had a hard time understanding the loss of her father. 

"She sits there with the door open. And you have to wonder," said Stephen through tears. "What goes through her mind when someone leaves the house? Is Papa coming back?" 

"He was more than just a father," added Donald. 

"He was their best friend," Maria chimed in. 

The family says they feel robbed of the opportunity to contest DeLong's release and have their voices heard in front of the state parole board at a parole hearing. 

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) confirmed to CBS13 Thursday that a parole hearing was not held for DeLong because of the nature of her sentence. 

"She received 257 days of pre-sentencing credit for time served while awaiting sentencing and was eligible for credit-earning opportunities while incarcerated. She was released to parole supervision on Feb. 19, 2025, after serving her full sentence as required by law. Offenders with determinate sentences (like DeLong) are sentenced to a specific amount of time and then released to parole or probation. They do not appear before the parole board," a spokesperson for CDCR said. 

If there had been a hearing, both Wheatland Chief of Police Brian Wittmer and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MAAD) advocate Rhonda Campbell say they would have spoken out in support of the Glass family and against an early release. 

"It's a preventable crime. I don't think we hold people accountable to it like we should and that's why it continues to occur," Wittmer said. "It does send a mixed message to people." Campbell said that California's emphasis on early release in many cases often revictimizes the victims. 

"It's just retraumatizing, and it is not right," Campbell said. "The public attitude needs to shift. DUI is a serious crime. The way our state laws address it, and the public to some extent, they don't consider it a violent crime. It's absolutely a violent crime. Ask any mother who has had their child ripped away from them." 

Campbell said that MAAD data finds that a first-time DUI offender has a 21% recidivism rate in the first five years. 

"Drunk driving is 100% preventable, 100% of the time. This family has lifelong consequences because some irresponsible person made a poor choice. It's not OK. There need to be consequences," Campbell said. To DeLong and any other drunk driver, the Glass family shares strong words. "Three little girls lost their father. A wife lost her husband. All these people's lives will be affected forever because of your negligence. You better feel that because we do," Donald said. The family also hopes this story can serve as a reminder to never get behind the wheel of of car under the influence because the cost could be a life lost and a lot of other lives changed forever. 

Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Wheatland family, police chief protest early release of woman convicted in fatal DUI hit-and-run )

Also on site :

• Glenview man, woman returning home from night out robbed at gunpoint: Police
• Over 20 feared dead in terror attack targeting tourists in India’s Kashmir
• Iran sanctions state TV channel for mocking Saudi Foreign Minister