Judge denies sex offender’s appeal challenging his commitment

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9-22-15 Minnesota:

A man convicted of multiple instances of sexual assault went to the appeals court, challenging a court ruling that he should be kept in the beleaguered Minnesota Sex Offender Program. But the judge disagreed.

In a 14-page opinion posted Monday, the judge denied Brian Lee Wilbur’s arguments that the court made an error when deciding he should be committed to the sex offender program.

Wilbur had challenged his commitment, arguing two things: One, that he doesn’t meet the criteria to be committed as a “sexually dangerous person” – and two, that he could take part in a less-restrictive treatment option.

His criminal history, which is noted in the opinion: He’d pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting the 15-year-old sister of his then-wife in 1987, was found guilty of sexually assaulting a 5-year-old girl who lived in his apartment complex in 1988, and nine years later was sentenced to 25 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 25-year-old woman while she was in her bedroom. There’s also a window-peeping case from 1992.

In 2014, with his sentence nearing its end, two medical examiners concluded Wilbur fit the definition of a sexually dangerous person, and he was committed to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program.

That ruling prompted Wilbur’s appeal, and arguments that the court erred.

Jury finds Helotes sex offender should be civilly restrained

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7-30-15 Texas:

Rodney Steve Haines showed no outward emotion when Montgomery County jurors unanimously declared him to be a “sexually violent predator” who could attack again and found that he should be civilly confined for treatment — with prosecutors calling it “scary” that Haines had been free for three months between his prison release and Wednesday’s commitment hearing.

Last month, it was reported that the state failed to hold mandated pre-release commitment hearings not only for the 60-year-old Haines, who was living with a relative in Helotes after he completed a 10-year prison sentence in April, but also for another sex offender, 56-year-old Joseph David Miller.

Miller has been living in Spring since his release from prison in May. Both were flagged as “high risk” pedophiles who under state law should have had hearings to determine if they should be civilly committed for treatment at least two months before their prison sentences ended.

When Haines’ hearing was finally held this week, prosecutors argued that he remained a threat to society. Haines’ attorney noted that his client had health issues and had not committed any new offenses since being freed.

The jury reached its unanimous verdict after deliberating less than 40 minutes.

Judge declines to release serial rapist from state control

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7-8-15 Florida:

Following the advice of mental health evaluators, a judge has declined to release from state control a serial rapist who roamed southeast Ocala in the mid-1980s.

Frank Kash, 59, waived his appearance at a Tuesday hearing, during which Assistant Public Defender Susan Bailey said she had no evidence to contradict the evaluation of her client.

Kash pleaded guilty to sexual battery, robbery with a deadly weapon, burglary and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon in connection to a rape case in February 1985. His prison term in that case ended in 2003.

The Jimmy Ryce Act, enacted in 1999, states that before inmates with histories of sex offenses are released from prison they are evaluated to determine the level of risk for re-offense. Sometimes the inmates can be subject to civil proceedings and commitment to a facility for treatment.

Jury finds sex offender still poses a danger

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3-26-15 Washington:

PORT ORCHARD — After deliberating for about a day, a Kitsap Superior Court jury found Wednesday that a man convicted of sexually assaulting a Bremerton girl in 1999 should be committed indefinitely to a secure facility.

Rick Allen Monroe, 46, will be returned to the state’s Special Commitment Center for sexually violent predators on McNeil Island.

The jury found that Monroe has a mental abnormality or personality disorder, which makes it more likely than not that he will reoffend if not confined.

One of the attorneys for the state, Assistant Attorney General Thomas Howe, argued that Monroe’s history of two convictions for sex crimes dating to 1984, not completing sex offender treatment in prison and a mental disorder made him a likely risk.

DA: Roslindale child predator civilly committed after jury finds him sexually dangerous

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Note: Commitment is based on a "legislative definition" not a "psychiatric definition," which means the legislature could confine anyone they disfavor by passing such a law..

1-19-2015 Massachusetts:

A sex offender from Roslindale previously convicted of manslaughter faces potential lifetime commitment at a secure facility after a jury on Jan. 16 found him to be sexually dangerous, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

After a three-day trial and about an hour of deliberations, a Suffolk Superior Court jury found Manuel Encarnacion, 43, of Roslindale, a sexually dangerous person under Ch. 123A of the Massachusetts General Laws, the DA said.

Judge Raffi Yessayan civilly committed Encarnacion to the Massachusetts Treatment Center in Bridgewater for a period of one day to life. The commitment comes at the conclusion of Encarnacion’s state prison sentence for a conviction in Suffolk Superior Court for indecent assault of a child under 14 and assault and battery.

Under the sexually dangerous person statute, prosecutors may seek post-incarceration civil commitment for any person serving a sentence for certain sex offenses if a qualified examiner finds the defendant to be sexually dangerous. Though they are civil proceedings, prosecutors’ burden of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt, just as in criminal cases. If found to be sexually dangerous, the defendant is committed to a secure facility for a period of one day to life but may petition for release once a year.

Jury rules sex offender not ready for transitional release

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10-25-2014 Iowa:

A former Waterloo man will remain in the fourth of a five-phase program for sex offenders.

Albert Allen Barnes, 55, had requested to be moved to the transitional release phase at the Civil Commitment Unit for Sex Offenders (CCUSO) in Cherokee, a treatment program run by the Iowa Department of Health.

But on Friday, a jury of 10 women and two men ruled that Barnes’ mental abnormality continued to make it likely he would commit sex offenses and that he wasn’t suitable to be placed in the final step.

The civil trial to consider Barnes’ request began Thursday in Black Hawk County District Court with his attorney, Assistant State Public Defender Steven Addington, arguing that Barnes had made enough progress in treatment to quality for transitional release.

The move would have kept him in a locked unit at the Cherokee facility, but he would be allowed to leave with staff permission to apply for jobs and become accustomed to society while escorted or under GPS tracking.

Pedophile refuses to have mental evaluation

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8-7-2014 Washington:

A case against a convicted pedophile from Kennewick was put on hold Wednesday because he refuses to participate in a mandatory psychological evaluation.

Stephen Robinson's decision in Benton County Superior Court means he will be held indefinitely in McNeil Island's Special Commitment Center until he changes his mind.

The state Attorney General's Office has been trying to keep Robinson locked up, possibly for the rest of his life, but needs a ruling by a judge or a jury that he's a sexually violent predator. An evaluation by a mental health professional is a required part of the process.

Robinson, 57, has a history of sex crimes going back three decades, continues to fantasize about young girls and would be a danger to the community if released from custody, Assistant Attorney General Jeremy Bartels has said.

Robinson was convicted of indecent liberties in Benton County in 1984. He started molesting a 3-year-old girl within days of meeting her, and the abuse lasted more than six months until the girl reported it to her father, according to court documents.

Jeno's provisional discharge neither granted, nor denied

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7-18-2015 Minnesota:

Robert Jeno left a St. Paul court room on Friday the same way he entered, with unanswered questions about his future.

Jeno, 49, appeared before the state Supreme Court Appeal Panel on Friday to request provisional release from the state's sex offender treatment program in St. Peter.

After more than an hour of testimony, the appeal panel chose to further review Jeno's files, and make a decision on his release at a later date. Jeno was convicted of first degree criminal sexual conduct in 1984, at the age of 19, after repeatedly sexually assaulting a 25-year-old woman in Faribault.

He served a 130-month prison sentence, but was then civilly committed by the state to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program, with facilities in Moose Lake and St. Peter.

Had his release been approved, he would've been the second convicted sex offender in the program's 20-year history to have been released.

Testimony

Just before the testimony began, Chief Judge Karen Asphaug told lawyers representing the state and Jeno that she never received a letter from the state Department of Human Services Commissioner Lucinda Jesson which opposed Jeno's provisional discharge.

Court keeps (Female) sex offender committed

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7-14-2014 Minnesota:

The Minnesota Appeals Court on Monday ordered a sex offender to remain in a treatment program.

About the time that order was posted, a federal judge elsewhere in St. Paul was hearing that he may be asked to free some sex offenders in the same program.

Marie Roblero-Barrios is not ready to be released, Appeals Judge John P. Smith wrote for the three-judge appeals court.

Roblero-Barrios claimed she has progressed enough in the state Human Services Department’s sexual offender treatment program to be released. But Smith agreed with an earlier appeals panel decision that she should remain in treatment.

Smith referred to Roblero-Barrios as a woman, but earlier court documents called the same person a man when he was known as Wesley Ross Mullins.

After being convicted in the late 1990s for molesting a 6-year-old boy in a retail store restroom, she was committed to the state sex offender treatment program in 2001.

Sex offender to remain in Moose Lake

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5-2-2014 Minnesota:

Court re-examining his commitment status

A Sibley County District Court judge has ruled that the sex offender at the center of a Supreme Court ruling that left a judge and attorneys confused as to what to do next will stay in Moose Lake until it gets sorted out.

Cedrick Scott Ince, 24, who has been in the Minnesota Sex Offender Program since August 2012, had been convicted of raping a woman in October 2008. Upon completion of his sentence, however, Sibley County prosecutors had him committed to the sex offender unit in Moose Lake.

But Ince appealed that commitment, and the Supreme Court ruled last week that the district court failed to establish that other, less severe alternatives are available.

Sibley County District Court Judge Thomas McCarthy issued an order Thursday saying Ince should remain in the Moose Lake facility until May 14, the day of his hearing. After the hearing, he will be driven back. The cost of both trips will be covered by the Sibley County Sheriff's Department.

In that order, McCarthy points out, the court found "clear and convincing" evidence that "as a result of his past course of harmful sexual conduct, his mental disorders and his lack of power to control his sexual impulses, it is highly likely that Ince will engage in further harmful sexual conduct and he is dangerous to others."

Convicted Cedar Rapids man committed as sexually violent predator

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3-10-2014 Iowa:

A judge ruled last month that a Cedar Rapids man convicted four times on charges involving sexual assaults met the requirements to commit him as a sexually violent predator.

Steven Lamont Davis, 48, pleaded guilty to lesser charges in all cases since 2003. In at least, two of the cases plea deals were offered because of problems with the victims’ testimony.

First Assistant Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks said in the two cases he prosecuted Davis, he had no choice but to offer plea agreements because one victim wouldn’t cooperate and the other had a previous relationship with Davis, which could affect her testimony or credibility.

Maybanks said this was the first case he asked the Iowa Attorney General’s Office to pursue a civil commitment of a sexually violent predator as defined by state law. Davis was nearing his release date on the most recent conviction, which is the appropriate time for the state to request the commitment.

“He (Davis) is an extreme example of a recidivist,” Maybanks said. “That’s why I requested this one and because I couldn’t fully prosecute him because of problems with witnesses. He had at least, four sexual convictions. He would get a conviction, serve little time and then reoffend.”

Davis’ convictions:

-2002, he pleaded guilty to assaulting a woman, her nose was broken.

-2003, he was charged with second-degree sexual abuse but pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily injury.

-2005, he pleaded guilty to domestic abuse assault while displaying a dangerous weapon. In this case he put a woman in choke hold and used lighter fluid to set the bedding on fire when he found her with another man.

-2009, he pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit sexual abuse. His girlfriend lent him money and when she came to his hotel room to collect the debt, he assaulted her.

-2011, he pleaded guilty to assault with intent to commit sexual abuse causing bodily injury against a female co-worker. During a date, they smoked crack cocaine and he put her in a choke hold when she refused to have sex with him. He sexually assaulted her three times.

According to the Sexually Violent Predator Act, the state only has to prove the offender committed one sexual violent crime and all of his criminal record can be considered to establish whether there is a pattern of sexually violent offenses. Davis is the sixth man committed to the unit from Linn County.

Notorious ‘Megan’s Law’ Sex Offender Denied Bid for Release

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12-19-2013 California:

A notorious child molester, who became the public face of Megan’s Law in the 1990s, lost another bid for freedom Wednesday.

Jurors in Santa Ana determined Wednesday that Sid Landau, 74, was a continued threat to children and should remain civilly committed as a Sexually Violent Predator, according to prosecutors in Orange County..

Landau has been held since 2000 under a law that allows authorities to keep some sex offenders in custody after prison.

In 1982, Landau was convicted of molesting a 10-year-old boy and sentenced to three years in state prison. He was arrested again in 1987 for molesting a 5-year-old boy, but the case was ultimately dismissed, prosecutors said.

In 1988, Landau pleaded guilty to 18 counts of lewd acts on a child for molesting a 9-year-old boy and received 17 years in state prison.

Yakima jury orders confinement for sex offender

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12-18-2013 Washington:

YAKIMA, Wash. — A 38-year-old repeat sex offender should be committed indefinitely, a Yakima County Superior Court jury decided this morning.

Jonathan Parsons, who has three convictions, will be held at the state’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island, where he will be subject to annual reviews.

The civil trial got underway last week, and the jury’s verdict came after hearing four days of testimony.

The state Attorney General’s Office argued that Parsons met the legal definition of a sexually violent predator based on his prior convictions and sought to have him civilly committed indefinitely.

Parsons’ first conviction came at age 14 when he pleaded guilty to first-degree child molestation in the sexual assault of an 11-year-old Union Gap boy. He was sentenced to 30 days. Four years later, he was convicted of second-degree child rape involving a 14-year-old boy and was sentenced to 18 months. At 22, he was convicted of second-degree child molestation in an incident involving a 13-year-old boy and was sentenced to 14.5 years.

TP: The trial was not a criminal proceeding and the rules of evidence are different. The state had to show that Parsons had already been convicted of sex crimes and suffers from an abnormality that makes it difficult to control his sexual urges making him “more likely than not” to commit predatory acts of sexual violence if released. ..Source.. by Yakima Herald-Republic

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Attorney General’s Office keeps Snohomish sex predator confined indefinitely

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10-28-2013 Washington:

EVERETT — A Snohomish County jury ruled late Thursday that convicted multi-victim sex predator, Garth Snively, remains a sexually violent predator and must continue confinement at the Pierce County Secure Community Transition Facility on McNeil Island.

“The attorneys in the AG’s Sexually Violent Predator Unit help keep dangerous offenders such as Garth Snively confined,” said Attorney General Bob Ferguson. “These attorneys keep our communities safe.”

Snively, 63, was convicted in 1993 of two counts of Child Molestation in the First Degree, involving five boys under age 12. He was also convicted of one count of Indecent Liberties, involving his two nephews in Snohomish County. He served time for his crimes from 1994 to 2003. He has since been confined as a sexually violent predator.

In documents filed with the court, the state reported Snively volunteered as a Boy Scout leader, Big Brother and church Sunday school teacher as a means of grooming victims. While Snively has provided various estimates of the number of his victims, at times as high as 100, he currently admits to molesting 37 boys.

Faced with several expert opinions that Snively should no longer be confined, Senior Counsel and SVP Prosecutor Malcolm Ross retained a nationally recognized expert in sexual offender risk assessment, Dr. Amy Phenix, to help make the state’s case. The state argued that Snively manipulated treatment providers into believing his behavior had changed. Snively used the same tactics to convince community and church organizations to grant him access to his victims.

As a result of Thursday’s verdict, Snively may not be released until his condition has so changed that a judge or jury rules he no longer meets the definition of a sexually violent predator.
In 1990, Washington became the first state in the nation to pass a law permitting the involuntary civil commitment of sex offenders after they have served their criminal sentences. The Attorney General’s SVP Unit was established shortly thereafter.

The law allows the state to civilly commit to a secure facility sexually violent predators who, because of a mental abnormality and/or personality disorder, are proven likely to commit predatory acts of sexual violence if not confined.

The AGO SVP Unit is responsible for prosecuting sex predator cases for 38 of Washington’s 39 counties (King County being the exception). In Fiscal Year 2013, the unit tried 19 cases, won 16 civil commitments and secured one recommitment. One trial ended in a hung jury and one offender was found by a jury not to meet criteria to be committed as a sexually violent predator.

As of September 2013, approximately 294 sexually violent predators are civilly committed in Washington state. ..Source.. by AG News Release

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Buffalo sex offender must remain in mental institution, court says

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9-28-2013 New York:

A Buffalo man, who was committed to a mental institution last year under the state’s civil confinement law for sex offenders, lost his appeal Friday.

The Appellate Division of State Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the state Attorney General’s Office showed by “clear and convincing evidence” that Michael W. Matter “is a dangerous sex offender requiring confinement.”

Matter, 48, was convicted in 1997 in Erie and Niagara counties of felonies involving the sexual abuse of two sisters. He served almost 11 years in prison and 21 months in a mental institution before State Supreme Court Justice Richard C. Kloch Sr. ordered him released.

After Matter lived on his own for a year and a half without incident, Kloch placed him on Strict and Intensive Supervision and Treatment, a tough parole regimen with 82 rules. Within a month, he had been accused of violating some rules.

Kloch accused the state’s parole and mental health bureaucracies of undermining his order for supervised release, but after a hearing, he sent Matter to be institutionalized in April 2012. ..Source.. by The Buffalo News

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In Re Girard

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1-11-2013 Kansas:

If expert opinion testimony based on scientific methods or procedures is offered as evidence in Kansas state courts, the offering party must satisfy the Frye test. See Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C.Cir.1923). That test requires a "showing that the basis of a scientific opinion is generally accepted as reliable within the expert's particular scientific field." State v. Shadden, 290 Kan. 803, 819, 235 P.3d 436 (2010).

In these proceedings to declare Douglas Girard and Eugene Mallard sexually violent predators, they ask us to instead apply the Daubert test to the actuarial risk assessments used by the State's expert witnesses in helping to predict the odds of their reoffending. See Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993). The Daubert test essentially makes Frye's test of "general acceptance" simply one factor to be considered in the admissibility calculus. 509 U.S. at 594, 113 S.Ct. 2786.

In both their cases, the district court essentially ruled that Frye applied to the actuarial risk assessments. It admitted the scientific opinion testimony which was partially based on these statistical calculations of risk. The Court of Appeals affirmed, with a majority holding that neither Frye nor Daubert applied because the actuarial assessments were not scientific. In re Girard, 45 Kan. App.2d 1109, 1111, 257 P.3d 1256 (2011). We granted the defendants' consolidated petitions for review and have jurisdiction under K.S.A. 20-3018(b).

We hold Frye applies and the actuarial risk assessments survive Frye's scrutiny. The district court therefore is affirmed. ..continued.. by Supreme Court of Kansas.

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Man who molested girls at Disneyland and Knott’s to be re-committed as an SVP

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8-26-2013 California:

SANTA ANA – A child molester will be re-committed to a state mental hospital as a Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) after a unanimous jury found today that the offender is a continued threat to children and the community. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) filed a petition to have Carlos Dominguez, 65, committed as an SVP based on his prior convictions of sexual assaults against a 10-year-old female family relative and a 10-year-old daughter of a family friend.

Under the law, potential SVPs are subject to mental health reviews by the Department of Mental Health prior to completion of their criminal sentence. If the People are able to prove that the defendant meets SVP criteria, a petition is filed to have the defendant civilly committed. There are three criteria that must be met in order to designate a person as SVP. First, the defendant must have committed at least one qualifying sexually violent offense. Second, he/she must be diagnosed with a mental disorder. Finally, it must be found that he/she is likely to re-offend unless he/she is held in custody and treated.

If a unanimous jury finds beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant meets the SVP criteria, the defendant is committed to a secure mental care facility for treatment until he is safe for release.

1979 Criminal Case (Case # C-42496)

In 1979, Dominguez attended a family gathering and was introduced to female relative 10-year-old Jane Doe #1. He isolated the victim by asking her parent’s permission to take the victim to Knott’s Berry Farm as a birthday gift. On April 16, 1979, Dominguez picked Jane Doe #1 up in his van and took her to the amusement park.

After riding on a few rollercoasters, Dominguez asked Jane Doe #1 if she wanted to put her purse away in the van. Dominguez took the victim to the van, laid Jane Doe #1 on the floor of the van, took off her clothes, and tied a strap around her eyes to blindfold her. Dominguez fondled the victim’s chest, kissed her, and placed his penis between her legs. He covered Jane Doe #1’s mouth as she began to cry and scream and told her to be quiet as Dominguez sexually assaulted her.

On Nov. 30 1979, a jury found Dominguez guilty of one felony count of lewd and lascivious acts upon a minor and he was sentenced to three years in state prison. He was released on parole in 1983 but was sent back to state prison for violating his parole in 1985 after being arrested for false imprisonment and battery. Dominguez was released from state prison in May 1986.

1987 Criminal Case (Case # C-61736 )

In 1986, having just recently been released from state prison, Dominguez met 9-year-old Jane Doe #2 who was the daughter of a family friend. Dominguez asked Jane Doe #2’s mother if he could take the victim to Disneyland and told the victim’s mother that he would be going with his girlfriend and other young girls. On July 18, 1986, Dominguez drove the victim to the theme park and rode a few rides, ate lunch, and returned to the van with the victim.

When they reached the van, Dominguez told the victim he had some candy for her in the backseat. Dominguez led Jane Doe #2 to the back of the van, laid her on the floor, took off the victim’s clothes, tied a blindfold around her eyes, and fondled her chest and touched her vagina. Dominguez put his hand over the victim’s nose and mouth when she began to cry and scream but continued to sexually assault her.

On Feb. 19, 1987, Dominguez pleaded guilty to one felony count of forcible lewd and lascivious acts upon a minor and was sentenced to 11 years in state prison.

1994 Parole Violation

In 1994, Dominguez violated his parole by not residing at the address he had registered as a sex offender. A surveillance report also indicated that Dominguez had been leaving his apartment building and getting into a car with two minor girls. Dominguez drove the girls to another home where he picked up a third minor girl and drove them to school.

Dominguez had in his vehicle a key to the apartment where he picked up the two minor girls, a baseball bat, wood club, nylon rope, work gloves, a stun gun, 12 large chocolates bars, and several unused and unopened condoms.

In December 1994, Dominguez was sent back to state prison for 11 months and was released on parole in December 1995.

1996 Parole Violation

On Jan. 23, 1996, one month after being released, Dominguez continued contacting the minor girls from his 1994 parole violation. Dominguez possessed a letter with the minor victim’s address and a stockpile of ammunition. Dominguez was sent back to state prison.

On April 2, 1996, the OCDA filed an SVP petition to have Dominguez civilly committed. He has been found to meet SVP by 12 jurors. A unanimous jury found today that Dominguez continues to meet the SVP criteria and poses a serious risk to children and the community.

If Dominguez were to be released, his lifetime sex offender registration would bar him from entering County recreational areas and City parks which have passed the Sex Offender Ordinance. Visit www.orangecountyda.com to read the prior press releases on the County’s Sex Offender Ordinance as well as the 14 other cities that have enacted the Child Safety Zone Ordinance.

Deputy District Attorney Michael Carroll of the Sexual Assault Unit handled this case for the OCDA. ..Source.. by Orange County District Attorney Press Release

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First woman committed to state’s sex predator center denied release

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8-23-2013 Washington:

The first woman ever committed to Washington’s special commitment center for sexually violent predators on McNeil Island on Friday was denied release to a halfway house.

Laura Faye McCollum, 55, was placed at the center in 1995 after a conviction for first-degree child rape in Pierce County.

Her attorneys had asked for a trial to determine whether she’s eligible to transfer out of the special commitment center and into a halfway house.

But on Friday, Pierce County Superior Court Judge Bryan Chushcoff turned down that request. He ruled she still meets the definition of a sex predator and that she would benefit from further treatment. The judge said, however, he would reconsider his decision if McCollum offered a firm plan of where she would live and a treatment program.

McCollum voluntarily accepted commitment after serving a five and a half year sentence for repeatedly molesting a girl between the ages of 2 and 3.

Later, she confessed to other sexual assaults on children.

State mental health experts still consider McCollum a danger to re-offend. ..Source.. by James Lynch

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Jury says sex offender should remain in hospital

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7-5-2013 California:

Cary Jay Smith has been confined to Patton under a rarely used law aimed at people considered a threat to themselves or others.

After 24 minutes of deliberation, an Orange County jury decided Wednesday that a Costa Mesa sex offender is dangerous and should remain in a state hospital, according to a court official.

Jurors began deliberating about whether to release Cary Jay Smith, 52, at 10:13 a.m. and reached a verdict by 10:37 a.m., according to Orange County Superior Court spokeswoman Gwen Vieau.

In 1999, Smith went to Patton State Hospital in San Bernardino on a 72-hour hold after his wife gave his psychiatrist a letter in which he described sex acts he wanted to perform on a boy, according to authorities. Other than a brief stint in Orange County Jail around 2002 after the district attorney's office charged him with sexually abusing a neighbor boy, Smith has not left the hospital, said his court-appointed attorney, Payson Lederman.

The charges from 2002 were dropped, according to court records and Lederman. But in 1983, Smith was convicted of a misdemeanor charge involving a child and was required to register as a sex offender, according to an Los Angeles Times article from 2002.

Smith is allowed a new trial every six months. Since Lederman began representing him in 2004, Smith has had 15.

As long as Smith continued to remain a danger, the trials will continue, said Ron Ervais, deputy county counsel for the Orange County Counsel's office.

Smith has claimed that he killed three boys and molested 200, and he has said he prefers to go by the name Mr. RTK, which stands for rape, torture, kill, according to Ervais.

"We do believe he's dangerous," Ervais said.

Smith has not been charged with any additional crimes but is being held at the state hospital because he's been determined to be dangerous.

Smith is one of five people being held under a rarely used law for those who pose a danger to themselves or others, according to authorities, but he has been held the longest at more than 10 years.

One person has been held for three years, while three people have been held since 2012, according to Department of State Hospitals spokesman Ralph Montaño.

"He's one of a kind with the nature of his confinement," Lederman said.

Smith lives at the hospital with sexually violent predators and those deemed by a jury to be not guilty by reason of insanity, Lederman said.

"I don't believe that is necessarily the only way to keep the community safe from Cary Smith ... [keeping him] behind the fences at Patton State Hospital," Lederman said.

"We need to explore other ways of keeping the community safe other than just confining people to a state hospital," he said. ..Source.. by Lauren Williams

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Travis Casebolt's appeal rejected

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6-21-2013 California:

A man convicted of kidnapping and molesting a 6-year-old Vacaville girl in 1990, and later determined to be a sexually violent predator, recently lost his appeal bid.

This week, the California State Court of Appeal, First Appellate District, announced that Travis Casebolt's request to overturn the finding that he was a sexually violent predator had been denied. Casebolt argued that there was insufficient evidence to support the jury's finding and that the Sexually Violent Predator Act is unconstitutional, among other claims.

Casebolt was originally sentenced to 33 years in prison.

Solano County prosecutors petitioned the court for a trial to determine whether he represented a danger to the community if released upon his becoming eligible for parole in 2009.

According to testimony at his trial, Casebolt was 19 and living next door to the 6-year-old when he kidnapped and sexually molested her, then left her gagged and bound with duct tape in a rural field, where she was found nearly a full day later. When investigators searched his bedroom, pornographic materials with sadomasochistic themes were found strewn about, according to testimony.

Forensic psychologist Deirdre D'Orazio testified that she diagnosed Casebolt with two mental disorders, sexual sadism and anti-social personality disorder, that made him a risk to re-offend. In explaining those determinations, D'Orazio testified to Casebolt's admitted possession and bartering of pornographic material while in state prison, his admitted dependence on illegal drugs in prison and a general lack of remorse.

D'Orazio also said that Casebolt has refused to accept treatment for sexual sadism while at the state hospital.

Under California law, sexually violent predators are people convicted of rape, sodomy, oral copulation, spousal rape or child molestation who have a mental disorder that makes them a continued danger to others.

Casebolt will remain committed to a secure state hospital indefinitely. ..Source.. by Ryan Chalk

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