A brief hearing was held Monday for the gunman in a 2001 shooting at a San Diego high school, who was granted permission from a judge earlier this year to be resentenced, potentially allowing him to be freed after 23 years in prison. Charles Williams, who was 15 at the time, pleaded guilty to kil ling two students and injuring 13 others after opening fire with his father’s revolver at Santana High School on March 5, 2001. He was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. A judge ruled in early June that Williams’ case will be sent to juvenile court and lead to his immediate release from prison without parole supervision or evaluation, according to San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan’s office. Santee Jan 7 Survivors weigh in on 2001 Santana High School shooter's possible release San Diego County Sheriff's Department Mar 5, 2021 First Responders Reflect on Santana High School Shooting 20 Years Later Prosecutors challenged the ruling in the appellate court to try to stop his release, which put proceedings on hold. A superior court judge must decide whether Williams’ case can be sent to juvenile court. “As prosecutors, our duty is to ensure justice for victims and protect public safety, and the defendant’s cruel actions in this case continue to warrant the 50-years-to-life sentence that was imposed,” Stephan said. “At some point our laws must balance the rights of defendants, the rights of victims, and the rights of the community to be safe.” Laura Sheppard, Williams’ defense attorney, said the resentencing would allow for a re-evaluation of a crime that was committed when someone was underage. “He’s expressed numerous times in words how incredibly sorry he is, how he feels he deserves nothing,” Sheppard said. “This is not about him feeling entitled to anything, including his freedom. It’s about the rest of us — advocates believing that no juvenile’s life should be thrown away because of something they did as a very young man.” Williams killed two students, 14-year-old Bryan Zuckor and 17-year-old Randy Gordon. He wounded 11 students and two staff members.​ Now age 39, he is currently being held at the California Institution for Men in Chino and became eligible for parole in September 2024. He was denied parole after being deemed an “unreasonable risk to public safety” by a state board. The board also said it was unclear if Williams understood why he committed the shooting. Prosecutors say Williams’ case has been transferred to juvenile court for a disposition hearing. Due to his age at the time of his shooting, his convictions will be redesignated as juvenile “true findings,” after he will be released from prison and potentially placed on juvenile probation, prosecutors said. Williams was able to petition for resentencing due to a law enacted in 2011 that allowed judges to give juvenile offenders with life without parole sentences a chance to be resentenced. An appeals court decision in 2022 made those with the “functional equivalent” of life without parole sentences eligible as well. ...read more read less