A serial child abuser sentenced to three life terms in 1999 was granted parole under a California law supported by Governor Gavin Newsom, only to be arrested days later on new charges from a 1996 case.
David Allen Funston, 64, was released on February 24 after serving more than 25 years for kidnapping and molesting at least seven children in the Sacramento area during a six-month period in 1995 and 1996.
He was scheduled to walk free at the end of February. On February 26, Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire filed a new felony charge against him for lewd or lascivious acts on a child under 14.
Funston was arrested and booked without bail. He pleaded not guilty on March 9. His next court hearing is set for April 6.
According to a Daily Mail exclusive report on Monday, 23rd, one victim, Amelia Markson, was three years old when Funston took her from her Sacramento apartment complex in December 1995.
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He offered her a Barbie doll, drove her to his house, sexually assaulted her, and left her in an unfamiliar neighborhood.
Markson, now 33, told the Daily Mail that she remembers parts of the attack, including being in a bathtub and seeing Funston dressed in fishnets and a tutu, with makeup.
“He put me on the bed,” she said. “I’m like, f*** that. You don’t need to be out. You need to stay where you’re at. He doesn’t deserve no freedom.”
Markson and at least six other victims were never told about the parole decision.
Funston was convicted in 1999 on 16 counts of kidnapping and child molestation. Sacramento Superior Court Judge Jack Sapunor called him “the monster parents fear most” at sentencing.
Funston targeted very young children outside apartment complexes, offering candy or dolls to lure them into his car.
In 2018, California lawmakers passed a bill allowing parole consideration for inmates 60 or older who had served at least 25 years. Gavin Newsom was lieutenant governor at the time.
After he became governor in 2019, the legislature lowered the threshold in 2020 to age 50, with 20 years of service. Newsom supported the change. The law did not exclude sex offenders serving life sentences for crimes against children.
Funston, now 64, qualified under the Elderly Parole Program. Court records show that at a 2022 parole hearing he admitted he still masturbated to fantasies about children, including an eight-year-old girl who lived near his daughter.
At his 2025 hearing, he said his fantasies mostly involved adult women but sometimes included teenagers and children. The board approved his release.
Former Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert, who prosecuted the original case, said she was horrified. “I applaud the Placer County DA for doing this, but let’s not forget that he was released from prison,” she said. “They let him out.”
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Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper called the parole decision “dead wrong.” “Someone that does these type of things, they don’t deserve a second chance in life,” he said.
Funston was identified in 1996 after neighbor Nansey Honeycutt, 65, saw him trying to lure two young Ukrainian sisters into his car with candy. She wrote down his license plate and called 911. He let the girls go.
One of them, Martha Romaso, now 34, said her family remains affected. Her mother is still traumatized, and her sister had night terrors for years.
Because Funston already had three life sentences from Sacramento County, Placer County prosecutors did not pursue the 1996 case at the time. They revived an existing warrant this month after public outcry over the parole.
Under state law, Governor Newsom cannot reverse the parole board’s decision in a non-murder case. Schubert said he could call a special legislative session to change the law or ask for the resignations of the board members who approved the release.
