Lawyers Challenge Davis on Killer’s Parole Denial

Convicted Calabasas killer Robert Rosenkrantz was illegally denied parole by Gov. Gray Davis, lawyers argued Wednesday in a case challenging the governor’s authority.

Attorneys for Rosenkrantz, arguing before Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Paul Gutman, said that Davis improperly relied on a blanket policy against releasing convicted killers from prison under any circumstances.

But lawyers for Davis underscored the governor’s power to overturn his parole board--which had ordered Rosenkrantz’s parole. Another hearing is set for June 7.

Rosenkrantz, 33, was convicted of second-degree murder in the 1985 shooting death of Steven Redman, a 17-year-old classmate who exposed Rosenkrantz as gay. He was sentenced to 17 years to life.