Gavin Newsom’s wife shares sister death, empathizes with San Quentin inmates

A viral video circulating on social media this Tuesday captures Jennifer Siebel Newsom, an outspoken filmmaker and spouse of California Governor Gavin Newsom, recounting a childhood tragedy. She describes how an accidental incident that resulted in her sister’s death became a poignant story she shared with young offenders at San Quentin State Prison.

At just six years old, Siebel Newsom was involved in a fatal accident in Hawaii involving a golf cart, which led to the death of her sister, Stacey. In the video, she explains that she held herself responsible for the incident, a narrative that evidently left a profound impact on the inmates, many of whom were juvenile offenders.


San Quentin State Prison with a mountain in the background.
In a video Siebel Newsom recalled telling prisoners at San Quentin state prison about how she killed her sister. Bloomberg via Getty Images

“Newsom’s wife’s latest virtue signal is telling San Quentin lifers that she faced zero consequences when her sister was killed because it was an accident then telling them their life sentences are probably for “accidents” too,” wrote Riley Gaines, the former collegiate swimmer turned conservative political activist.

Gaines added, “Peak elite tone-deafness.”

Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general in charge of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, deadpanned: “What the …”

It’s unclear when exactly the video interview of Siebel Newsom occurred, but reports suggest California’s “First Partner” has made multiple trips to San Quentin over the years, including a movie night in 2016 in which she showed her documentary “The Mask You Live In.”

“I quite enjoy spending time with people and being real, and unmasking, and showing them it’s safe to unmask themselves,” Siebel Newsom says in the resurfaced video.

A spokesperson for Siebel Newsom confirmed the interview was connected to the film but did not identify exactly when it occurred and declined further comment.

Siebel Newsom’s tragic family story made headlines after a 2023 interview with the Los Angeles Times, when she described experiencing lasting survivor’s guilt and feeling pressure to “be perfect” in the aftermath.


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