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The office of California Governor Gavin Newsom informed the Armenian National Committee of America Western Region Wednesday that the Governor has decided to allow Hampig Sassounian’s release by waiving any further appeals of the court’s ruling which upheld the Parole Board’s decision to grant parole, Asbarez reported.

“We are truly grateful to Governor Newsom and his team for keeping the lines of communication open with us, for listening to our concerns, and for making the humanitarian decision to allow Hampig Sassounian’s parole to stand. We look forward to witnessing his long overdue release from prison,” stated ANCA-WR Chair Nora Hovsepian.

It is anticipated that Sassounian’s release will be processed in the coming days pending finalization of the necessary steps under law.

The Los Angeles County Superior Court on February 24 reversed a decision by Governor Newson who rejected the parole eligibility and application of Hampig Sassounian, court documents obtained by Asbarez show.

LA County Superior Court Judge William C. Ryan vacated Newsom’s decision to reject Sassounian’s parole and reinstated the California Parole Board’s decision to grant Sassounian parole.

Sassounian has been serving a life sentence when he was convicted in 1984 for the 1982 murder of Turkish Consul General to Los Angeles Kemal Arikan. In 2002 a federal appeals court overturned a special circumstances finding in his sentence, making Sassounian eligible for parole after serving a minimum of 25 years.