Daniel Bezemer, convicted of the 2003 first-degree murder of his 17-year-old girlfriend Justine Vanderschoot in Placer County, California, has been denied parole three times, most recently on December 17, 2025. He is serving 25 years to life and remains incarcerated in a California state prison, with his next parole hearing tentatively scheduled for 2028.1KOLO-TV. Convicted Killer Denied Parole 3rd Time2CBS News Sacramento. Placer County Daniel Bezemer Parole Denied
Why Bezemer Gets Parole Hearings At All
Bezemer pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in 2005 and accepted a 25-to-life sentence that took the death penalty off the table.3Sacramento Bee. Daniel Bezemer Parole Denied Vanderschoot Murder He was 18 when he killed Vanderschoot, and that age is what puts him in front of the Board of Parole Hearings.
California Penal Code Section 3051, expanded through SB 260, SB 261, and AB 1308, grants youth offender parole hearings to people whose controlling offense was committed at age 25 or younger. The board must weigh the “diminished culpability of youth” and evidence of rehabilitation and maturity when it evaluates these cases.4FindLaw. California Penal Code Section 3051
The Three Parole Denials
Bezemer’s first parole hearing was held on August 10, 2022. The board denied parole for three years. That decision did not stand. In October 2022, the executive board of the Board of Parole Hearings vacated the ruling because a recording device had failed to capture the full five-hour proceeding, and a new hearing was ordered.5Placer County. CDCR Votes to Give Justine Vanderschoot’s Murderer New Hearing
The replacement hearing took place on March 23, 2023, and ran six hours. The board again denied parole and set a five-year denial period, which would have kept Bezemer from another hearing until 2028.6Placer County. Justine Vanderschoot’s Murderer Denied Parole
That did not hold either. On December 17, 2025, only two years into the five-year denial, Bezemer received a third hearing. The board denied parole again, weighing the brutality and premeditation of the crime, the harm to Vanderschoot’s family, his institutional behavior, and his level of insight into what he had done.1KOLO-TV. Convicted Killer Denied Parole 3rd Time
How Bezemer Got An Early Hearing
The 2025 hearing happened because Bezemer petitioned for an advanced hearing under Penal Code Section 3041.5(d). That provision lets an inmate ask for an earlier hearing by demonstrating a “change in circumstances” that establishes a “reasonable likelihood” that public safety no longer requires continued incarceration. The board granted the petition.7FindLaw. California Penal Code Section 3041.5
Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire said the advancement “should never have happened.” His office demanded answers from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation on why the earlier date was granted, and called for a comprehensive audit of CDCR, more oversight of early-release mechanisms, and a ban on administrative regulations that bypass parole board decisions.8Placer Sentinel. Parole Hearing Scheduled for Justine Vanderschoot’s Killer Three Years Early
The Crime The Board Keeps Weighing
Vanderschoot was the youngest child of Don and Lynnette Vanderschoot of Auburn, California. She and Bezemer began dating when she was about 15, and Bezemer grew jealous and controlling. Friends later said she was unsure whether he would let her end the relationship.9Placer County. Justine Vanderschoot Forever Remembered10CBS News. Justine Vanderschoot Murder California Danny Bezemer Brandon Fernandez
On the evening of September 1, 2003, Bezemer had dinner with the Vanderschoot family. Before 12:30 a.m. on September 2, Vanderschoot left home to meet him. She never came back.11Nevada Appeal. Placer County Men Arraigned on Murder Charge
Bezemer and his 21-year-old roommate Brandon Fernandez had already dug a grave in the woods near Applegate. They drove Vanderschoot to the site, where Bezemer strangled her. They stripped her body, poured what investigators later identified as methanol on her, and placed her in the shallow hole.12People. Justine Vanderschoot Killing Buried Alive California Teen Both men later told investigators that Vanderschoot moved and made sounds while she was in the grave. An autopsy found dirt in her lungs and esophagus, and pathologists concluded she was still breathing when she was buried.10CBS News. Justine Vanderschoot Murder California Danny Bezemer Brandon Fernandez
On September 18, 2003, Bezemer admitted during interrogation that he had strangled Vanderschoot and led investigators to her remains.13Sacramento Bee. Placer County Parole Hearing Vanderschoot He told detectives that he changed his mind about killing her when she said “Danny, I love you,” but strangled her anyway.10CBS News. Justine Vanderschoot Murder California Danny Bezemer Brandon Fernandez
Organized Opposition To Release
Every Bezemer parole hearing has drawn organized opposition. The Placer County DA’s office runs a “Justice for Justine” initiative that includes an online petition, public education, and formal representation of the family at each hearing.14Placer County. Justice for Justine Petition The petition opposing parole for Bezemer and Fernandez has gathered more than 22,000 signatures, and hundreds of letters have gone to the Board of Parole Hearings.15KCRA. Justine Vanderschoot’s Murderers Parole Hearing
Justine’s sister, Christine Vanderschoot, has described the repeated hearings as like “ripping off the band aid” and warned that if the killers were released, “they quite possibly could come back to our community.”16Placer County. Placer County Shows Overwhelming Support In July 2022, community members held a candlelight vigil on the steps of the Historic Auburn Courthouse, hosted by Crime Victims United, and the courthouse dome was lit in pink in Vanderschoot’s honor. At that gathering, DA Gire told the crowd the message was: “Keep her murderers behind bars.”17Placer County. Crime Victims United Candlelight Vigil
Where Bezemer’s Co-Defendant Stands
Bezemer’s parole track is separate from Fernandez’s. Fernandez pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and received 15 years to life. He was denied parole in 2017 and again in July 2022 for five years, and a Placer County Superior Court judge denied his petition for resentencing under Senate Bill 1437 on August 1, 2024, finding that the evidence proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Fernandez acted with “an intent to kill” and demonstrated “reckless indifference to human life.”18KCRA. Parole Denied for One of Justine Vanderschoot’s Killers19Placer County. Placer County Judge Denies Release for Justine Vanderschoot’s Killer Fernandez’s next tentative parole hearing is set for July 2027.12People. Justine Vanderschoot Killing Buried Alive California Teen
What Happens Next
Bezemer’s next parole hearing is tentatively scheduled for 2028. Under California law, he can again petition for an earlier date by showing a change in circumstances.2CBS News Sacramento. Placer County Daniel Bezemer Parole Denied The Vanderschoot family and the Placer County District Attorney’s office have said they will oppose release at every future proceeding.