JUDGE APPROVES RELEASE OF “BOLDER THAN MOST” RAPIST, BUT LOCATION NOT YET DETERMINED
By Miriam Raftery
July 29, 2019 (San Diego) – Alvin Ray Quarles, dubbed the “Bolder than Most” rapist, will be released to a supervised home at an as-yet undisclosed location somewhere in San Diego County, Superior Court Judge David Gill ruled today.
Last fall, Gill ruled that Quarles could be released to a supervised residence in Jacumba Hot Springs, but later agreed to reconsider his decision at the request of prosecutors and Supervisor Dianne Jacob. After several days of an evidentiary hearing from which victims of Quarles were barred last week, Judge Gill has affirmed that Quarles can be released. However, the Jacumba property fell through, so an August 30 status conference has been set, when the state may present housing options and the public can testify, Times of San Diego reports.
Quarles, 56, pled guilty in 1989 to over a dozen sexual assaults in the 1980s and gained notoriety for attacking women at knifepoint, sometimes forcing their husbands or boyfriends to watch as he raped his victims. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison. But in 2014 he was transferred to Coalinga State Hospital and received sex offender treatment. In 2016, he petitioned the court through a conditional release program.
Cynthia Medina and Mary Taylor, both victims of Quarles, criticized the process of closed hearings to prevent disclosure of psychiatric reports on Quarles due to privacy laws.
“This is just one more kick in the gut,” Taylor, an East County teacher assaulted by Quarles, stated tearfully after the hearing, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Taylor asked why she should trust the system after she was prevented from knowing who testified in support of Quarles’ release.
Supervisor Jacob said of the exclusion of victims, “That’s not fair and that’s not right.” She has opposed Quarles’ release, but says if Judge Gill believes he is fit to be placed in a community, “I think we ought to put him right next to Judge Gill’s house.”
According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Judge Gill has said he believes adequate safeguards will be in place at a supervised facility to protect the public. The judge has indicated that he does not believe Quarles will ever qualify for unconditional release, meaning complete freedom, into the community.