1976 Chowchilla kidnapping

1976 Chowchilla kidnapping
Interior of the trailer where the victims were held
Location	Chowchilla, California, U.S.
Date	July 15, 1976 – July 16, 1976; 48 years ago (1976-07-16)
Attack type	Mass kidnapping, mass child abduction, attempted robbery, psychological torture
Weapon	Rifle[1]
Injured	Several children suffering cuts, bruises, and burns
Victims	26 children and 1 adult
Perpetrators	James Schoenfeld Richard Schoenfeld Frederick Newhall Woods IV
Defender	Frank Edward Ray Michael Marshall
Motive	Ransom
Verdict	All pleaded guilty to kidnapping All found guilty of infliction of bodily harm at trial Infliction of bodily harm convictions overturned
Convictions	Kidnapping for ransom Robbery
Charges	Kidnapping for ransom and robbery, infliction of bodily harm
Sentence	Life imprisonment with the possibility of parole (previously without parole) Richard paroled after 36 years James paroled after 39 years Woods paroled after 46 years
Litigation	Lawsuits against kidnappers settled for undisclosed amounts

On July 15, 1976, in Chowchilla, California, three armed men hijacked a school bus. They abducted the driver and 26 children, ages 5 to 14, and imprisoned them in a truck trailer buried in a quarry in Livermore, California. The bus driver and children managed to escape before the kidnappers could issue their ransom demands. All of the victims survived but many suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The kidnappers intended to use ransom money from the kidnapping to restore the Victorian Rengstorff House in Mountain View, California.^[2]

The kidnappers were caught, convicted and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. An appellate court overturned the finding of bodily harm. Subsequently, the kidnappers were resentenced to life with the possibility of parole. The incident led to major changes in California laws regarding bodily injury and psychological trauma.^{[citation needed]}

By 2022, all three kidnappers had been paroled.