JUDGE APPROVES RELEASE OF SEXUALLY VIOLENT PREDATOR ALLAN EARL JAMES IN JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS

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By Miriam Raftery
 
March 25, 2019 (San Diego) – Ignoring tearful pleas from three people victimized as children by sexually violent predator Alan Earl James, San Diego Superior Court Judge Albert Haratunian III today reaffirmed his earlier decision allowing release of James into Jacumba Hot Springs.

Starting by April 25, James will be living at a home on Old Highway 80 across from the Jacumba airport. Following public protests, the Judge had agreed to review his decision, but Monday issued his ruling after finding the placement in Jacumba met statutory requirements.

 
James, 62, has convictions for crimes including kidnapping for purposes of child molestation, unlawful sexual intercourse and forcible child molestation against three minor victims in San Diego County in 1986. He had previously been convicted of a lewd act on a child under 14 in 1981 but served only 180 days in jail.
 
Following his 1986 convictions, he was sentenced to 28 years in prison. He has als been diagnosed with pedophilia disorder and has been designated as a sexually violent predator who prosecutors have warned is likely to re-offend.
 
Before his release, San Diego’s district attorney filed a petition to have James committed to a state hospital as a sexually violent predator and in 2007, after a jury trial, he was sent to Coalinga Sate Hospital for an indeterminate term. Las October, despite petitions from San Diego’s D.A. to keep James hospitalized, the state hospital recommended James for release.   
 
He will be monitored under the conditional release program for eventual integration back into the community despite his serious crimes.
 
Supervisor Jacob issued a statement denouncing the judge’s ruling.  “The high concentration of thee monsters out East is outrageous,” said Jacob, who last week sent a letter to the state attorney general asking him to investigate the disproportionate placement of sexually violent predators in East County’s rural towns.  
 
James is the 10th sexually violent predator in rural East County – and nine of those have been placed in Jacumba, according to Jacob. Area residents have organized to oppose the releases, staging protests at the courthouse urging the judge to protect those in their communities.
 
KUSI news reports that the state’s treatment program for sex offenders is three times more expensive than prison.
 
The state invests significant funding in sex offender treatment program, but there’s no guarantee the treatments will work – and some have been quick to reoffend. One pedophile released into Jacumba removed his angle bracelet and raped an elderly woman in her home nearby, giving substance to residents’ fears.
 
Another concern is that law enforcement times in rural areas such as Jacuumba, Campo and Boulevard are far slower than in our county’s urban areas, based on public records compiled by East County Magazine in 2014. The average response time in that rural area was 30 minutes or more, compared to just five or six minutes in the cities of Lemon Grove and Santee, all served by the San Diego Sheriff Department.  
 

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Comments

One Example of a Major Problem in our "Criminal" Justice System

Recently, East County Magazine posted my Opinion piece, "Why I Am Against The Death Penalty" (https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/reader’s-editorial-why-i-am-against-death-penalty ). In NO WAY does my opposition to the death penalty mean that I am soft on crime. While I believe in redemption, in second chance, I am also quite aware that there exist certain classes of offenders and individuals within other classes who the overwhelming scientific evidence finds they can't be rehabilitated. Maybe a few can; but at some point society has to weigh the rights of the individual against the rights of the community, With rapists, child molesters, and serial killers, the evidence says they should not be released. Perhaps a small number can be rehabilitated; but the evidence must be much much much stronger than that used in current parole hearings and, again, the vast majority should never be released.

Another problem with our "criminal" justice system is sentencing. For instance, someone is give 10 - 20 years; but is eligible for parole after a much shorter time. I believe this is both absurd and confusing to juries. If the sentence is 10 - 20 years, then they can only be eligible on the day after 10 yearsl As far as I can tell, we are the only nation with such a confusing, illogical sentencing scheme.

A third problem is our mass incarceration for things we don't like; but do NOT harm us. While I have NEVER smoked, only tried a little alcohol in late teens, almost 60 years ago, and NEVER used an illegal drugs, I find it inhumane to imprison someone for possession of any substance for personal use. Especially absurd when cigarettes and alcohol are legal. A great book that deals with this is James Morone's, "Hellfire Nation: The Politics of Sin in American Culture". At best, whether marijuana or even cocaine, when used harms no one, at worst it harms the individual. Keep in mind that, yes, marijuana damages lungs; but no more than cigarettes and one can't do both at once. And yes drugs can if extended use alter our brains; but so can alcohol, etc. If however, one gets behind the wheel of a car, well, doesn't matter if alcohol or antihistamine that causes drowsiness, then one puts others at risk. For a nation that claims being the freest on Earth, we sure seem to like to deprive others of their freedoms. And if one claims that drug laws are to protect people, how does putting someone in an overcrowded prison, subject to violence and homosexual rape, then having a criminal conviction follow them the rest of their lives, protect them from harm? I support honest quality drug education efforts and rehab programs; but not imprisonment for minor offenses.

And finally, as far as I can tell, no other nation has created a for-profit prison industry, one who lobbies for more crimes on the books, for longer sentences, gets fined over and over again for poor conditions, mistreatment of prisoners, and substandard medical care. How does this differ from previous chain gangs where Southern States arrested minorities to make money by renting them out?

So, yes, we should revise our statues with clear distinction for certain crimes not being eligible for parole, except in rare instances. Believing in redemption doesn't mean turning a blind eye that some people just can't be redeemed at which point the safety of the community comes first. Just make sure we are careful and don't use this as an excuse to deny many others parole and a second chance.

Alan Earl James should NOT be released into the community! ! !

 

Judge should be removed from his position!

I believe the judge is making a very serious mistake which could haunt him for the rest of his life. It certainly will the residents of this once peaceful community which has become a dumping ground for sick, twisted sex offenders. A heartless, callous, unwise decision by Superior Court Judge Albert Haratunian 111 for sure. Now these parents and children, will live in additional fear. Most (if not all) child predators never truly change - no matter the type of treatment given. Their brain function is skewed in such a way that this deviant behavior simply cannot be corrected. I'll be surprised if Alan Earl James doesn't violate his parole in some way, or re-offend. It would be far less expensive and safer for the public, just to keep them incarcerated - for life!