A California court ruled that a convicted sex offender who was registered with California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) could be placed at a “non-secure” mental health facility in the Antelope Valley. The court ruled that because he has been deemed no longer a threat to the public, he should be given the opportunity to be treated at the facility.
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The Antelope Valley Authority has filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of sex offender Calvin Grassmier, who has been held in solitary confinement for over eight months at the Los Angeles County Jail. The petition was filed on behalf of Calvin by his lawyers, who argue that he is being held in violation of his constitutional rights. The petition says the L.A. County Sheriff Department violated Calvin’s rights under the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by allowing Grassmier to be put in solitary confinement.
(CBSLA) – LITTLEROCK (CBSLA) – Despite weeks of objections from hundreds of locals, a court decided on Wednesday that a sexually violent predator may be put in the Antelope Valley hamlet of Littlerock.
Calvin Lynn Grassmier, 66, was ordered to be put in a four-bedroom house at 10320 East Ave. Q-10 by Superior Court Judge James Bianco on Wednesday.
Calvin Lynn Grassmier (File) (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)
Grassmier will be monitored throughout the clock and will have to wear a GPS ankle monitor. According to the California Department of State Hospitals, monitoring may be decreased in the future for good conduct.
Grassmier was convicted of sexual assaults in the 1970s and 1980s, but his most recent offence was in 1988, and none of the crimes involved children, according to authorities.
Grassmier was sentenced to 15 years in state prison in 1989. According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, he was committed to the Department of State Hospitals as a “sexually violent predator” in 1999 and detained in a secure facility for treatment.
According to his attorney Tony Corti, Grassmier was ordered to be freed in November on the condition that he undergo community therapy.
Bianco stopped Grassmier from being placed in a home in La Crescenta in July. He listed five reasons in his decision, including a large number of people living in close proximity to the planned site and intermittent mobile phone coverage, which is critical for GPS tracking.
When word of Grassmier’s possible relocation to the Antelope Valley first broke last month, it sparked outrage in the neighborhood. According to the Antelope Valley Press, thousands of individuals signed petitions opposing the case, and more than 1,200 people wrote emails to the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office.
According to the newspaper, fifteen individuals from the neighborhood came to the Hollywood Courthouse on Wednesday to express their emotions to the court, including a rape victim whose letter was read aloud.
After the decision, the lady stated, “I’m full on tears down my face because I’m a parent of four teenage girls.” “They’ve seen what I’ve gone through. They’ve witnessed how my whole life has been turned upside down as a result of it.”
The decision was also criticized by Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale) and L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger.
In a statement, Barger stated, “I am profoundly saddened by today’s court judgment.” “Placing Mr. Grassmier in Littlerock further traumatizes a population that is already disadvantaged. People have long felt disenfranchised, and Mr. Grassmier’s appointment just adds to the perception that residents’ views and safety are ignored. Families would feel frightened and uneasy in their own homes and communities as a result of this location, which is within two miles of four schools.”
In reaction to the decision, state Senator Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) issued the following statement:
“I am shocked and disturbed that this judge disregarded the concerns of hundreds of families who said unequivocally that they did not want this sexually violent monster placed in their neighborhood.
“Rural areas have become a dumping ground for California’s worst criminals, and today’s judgment is no different. If the court thinks Calvin Grassmier need 24/7 security/surveillance to keep the community safe, maybe keeping him locked up would have been a wiser choice all around.”
Liberty Healthcare Group, a private company that the state pays to put and monitor individuals labeled as “sexually violent predators,” is overseeing Grassmier’s release.
“Mr. Grassmier is no longer the same man he was in 1988… On Wednesday, the defense counsel told the court, “He’s a new guy.”
Corti said that his client is “ready to start his new life” and “intends to comply with everything,” adding that he would be “constantly supervised.”
(CBS Broadcasting Inc., Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved.) This article was written with the help of City News Service.)
