The father of the abused newborn, Bernie Van De Yacht, said the decision was a major blow after his family and prosecutors fought to get Ennis to serve her entire six-year prison sentence.
Van De Yacht‘s son, Joseph, now 6, suffered permanent optical nerve damage from abuse that spanned from July to October 2004. Joseph was 3 1/2 weeks old when the abuse started. In addition to the damage to his vision, he also suffered bone fractures.
“She is walking free today without serving half her sentence….” he said. “It makes me, as a father, sick to my stomach.”
But Ennis’ attorney, Paul Wallin, said the damage had already been done, and his client now lives in fear of retribution if she speaks out about the agency.
“They have ruined her life,” he said.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg ordered Ennis’ release July 21, stating that her reincarceration two years after state officials mistakenly released her violated her due process.
Schnegg stated that the agency’s “actions in this case are more than ‘unfortunate.’”
“It this case, they rise to the level of gross negligence,” Schnegg wrote.
The order came after Ennis’ attorney challenged her detention, arguing that it was unlawful, especially since she had already started a new life for herself following her prison release.
She was engaged and pregnant with her second child when parole agents rearrested her in December.
While in prison, 36-year-old Ennis gave birth to her child, who was temporarily removed from her custody.
At the time, prison officials said Ennis would serve her full sentence and be released in spring 2013.
