Runners, Community Leaders Protest Placement of Sexually Violent Predator in AV

Los Angeles judge considers High Desert as home for shunned Santa Barbara resident

Standing with local elected and community leaders and law enforcement at a press conference today, Sen. George Runner (R-Antelope Valley) and Assemblywoman Sharon Runner (R-Lancaster) criticized Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dennis Landin for considering the Antelope Valley as the next home for recently released sexually violent predator Kenneth Rasmuson, a Santa Barbara County resident who was shunned by residents in the coastal county when they found out he would be released there.

“We’re not surprised that Santa Barbara residents don’t want Rasmuson, but we don’t want him either,” Senator Runner said. “The fact is he belongs in that county because that’s his last known county of residence when he committed his crime and the law says conditionally released SVPs must go back to their county of domicile.”

Rasmuson, 45, served time in the early 1980s for raping an 11-year-old boy after luring the child into a gully in the Santa Barbara area. He served a handful of years in prison and Atascadero State Mental hospital and was declared “cured” of his sexually violent behavior upon his 1985 release.

Almost two years to the date after his release, Rasmuson abducted and raped a three-year-old boy, who was found wandering naked the next morning in Agoura Hills. Rasmuson turned and has been institutionalized for 20 years – most of that time in prison and a few years in Atascadero under civil commitment, which is the common procedure for sexually violent predators (SVP). While in the state hospital, Rasmusen admitted to raping several other children prior to raping the toddler, according to the Santa Barbara Independent newspaper.

Rasmuson does not fall under Jessica’s Law because he was not incarcerated on Nov. 8, 2006, when the law was approved by voters. However, upon Rasmuson’s conditional release from Atascadero in late 2007, the court ordered that Rasmuson comply with Jessica’s Law conditions (including wearing a GPS device and living 2,000 feet away from public schools and other places where children gather).

Still, even though he found dozens of Santa Barbara County dwellings that were more than 2,000 feet away from schools, making him compliant, he was shunned by the community – landlords, neighbors and community leaders – who strongly protested that they don’t want a violent rapist next door.

“Really, Rasmuon’s biggest problem isn’t any statute – whether it’s Jessica’s Law or Sexually Violent Predator laws,” Senator Runner said. “His biggest problem is one that has plagued dangerous sex offenders for ages: The public does not want a serial rapist living in their backyard.”

Now that Santa Barbara County residents have rejected Rasmuson, his mother has asked the judge to look at Los Angles County – specifically Antelope Valley where housing is more affordable. Based on this arbitrary request of Rasmuson’s mother who lives in Oregon, a sexually violent predator may soon be a neighbor in an Antelope Valley community.

Currently, he lives in a trailer on Santa Barbara County Sheriff land wearing a GPS device and is under the watch of Liberty Healthcare, a state contractor whose employees are assigned with guarding Rasmuson 24-hours a day while Los Angeles authorities review housing in Antelope Valley on Judge Dennis Landin’s orders.

“We don’t know if Judge Landin is going to rule that Rasmuson live in Los Angeles County or not, but the fact that the judge is going so far as to order a site review has us concerned,” Assemblywoman Sharon Runner said.

“Los Angeles County residents have a right to know that they might become neighbors to a violent sex offender and they have a right to object to such a placement – just like Santa Barbara County residents did.”

Judge Dennis Landin is scheduled to hear the matter on Feb. 6.