WOODLAND, Calif. -- A parolee accused of killing a Yolo County sheriff's deputy was scheduled to be arraigned in court Wednesday, but questions have arisen over why he was let of prison.

Marco Antonio Topete is accused of shooting to death Deputy Tony Diaz on Sunday in the small town of Dunnigan. Topete was captured at a rest stop after a massive manhunt.

Records show Topete has a history of assault, prison time and gang ties.

The state Department of Corrections said a risk assessment was done on Topete in September of 2006, before he was paroled in 2007. Topete scored as a high risk for violence and as a medium risk to commit more crimes. That means he was trying to maintain good behavior while incarcerated.

"When you see an individual gets hurt as a result of somebody who had a prior criminal history, none of us want to see that," said Gordon Hinkle of the state Department of Corrections. "But what I would say is that you would have to address sentencing laws on how individuals are sentenced if Californians really want to get stricter on crime."

Topete has two strikes against him under the state's three-strikes law. If convicted of killing Diaz, Topete faces a life prison sentence.

Once on parole, Topete was listed as someone who had a stable home life.

Topete is accused of leading police on a high-speed chase from Davis north to Dunnigan late Sunday. Diaz was shot to death at the end of the chase, police said. Topete's baby daughter was found safe inside of his abandoned car.

As part of his parole, Topete was not allowed to drive a car.

In 1993, Topete was sentenced to 16 months in prison for disregard for safety. He served four months and was paroled.

Between 1993 and 1998, he returned to prison and was paroled four more times.

In October of 1998, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison for assault with a semi-automatic rifle. Yolo County court records show Topete was charged with trying to kill a man at the direction of or in association with a street gang. He pleaded no contest to assault with a firearm.

The Department of Corrections said Topete was paroled on his earliest release date several years short of his full term, in March 2007. Officials take into account the type of crime, laws in effect at the time of the crime and good behavior before they approve paroles.