HomeTop Stories'Pillowcase Rapist' will move to LA's Antelope Valley despite community objections

‘Pillowcase Rapist’ will move to LA’s Antelope Valley despite community objections

Despite the objections of residents and government officials, a convicted serial rapist dubbed the “pillowcase rapist” by prosecutors can now move to a rural community in Los Angeles County’s Antelope Valley after a court ruling.

LA County Superior Court Judge Robert S. Harrison wrote in a court order that Christopher Hubbart can move to the area after his parole. “That two other sexually violent predators have been released into nearby areas is not relevant to the evaluation of the proposed property, and no alternative placements have been proposed by any agency,” Harrison wrote in the order.

Hubbart, 63, has been jailed and moved in and out of mental health facilities in connection with rape and sex crime convictions in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties in 1973, 1983 and 1990. Authorities have said he would use a pillowcase to to muffle the screams. of his victims and has admitted to raping approximately forty women between 1971 and 1982.

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In early September, LA County District Attorney George Gascón said his office would challenge a Bay Area judge’s ruling that would clear the way for Hubbart’s move to LA. Last year, he was deemed suitable for parole by a Santa Clara County Superior Court.

“Frankly, I think this is outrageous,” Gascón said at the time. “This is the third time in the last three years that we have had outside courts moving sexually violent predators into LA County, particularly in the Antelope Valley.”

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Christopher Hubbart, seen in an undated photo, admitted to raping nearly 40 women between 1971 and 1982, according to prosecutors.

CBS Los Angeles


Two other convicted sexually violent predators were released in 2021 in the Antelope Valley, which has become an attractive location for correctional authorities and courts looking to relocate recently released or paroled sex offenders — due to its affordability and low population density, according to the Los Angeles Times. .

Prior to his decision, Judge Harrison received 600 letters and petitions from local residents opposing Hubbart’s release to the Juniper Hills community of the Antelope Valley, the Times said. Cynthia Farrow, a teacher who lives near a violent sex offender, told the Times that she and others in the area fought to stop Hubbart’s move.

“We’re writing petitions, we’re attending court appearances and we’re doing everything we can to stop his move here,” Farrow told the Times. ‘Enough is enough. We must be respected.’

LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger spoke out against Hubbart’s move in a statement released Tuesday.

“I am outraged and extremely frustrated to learn that a third sexually violent predator will be harbored in the Antelope Valley,” Barger said in the statement, describing the LA County court ruling as “simply terrible.”

In 2014, Hubbart moved from Coalinga State Hospital in Fresno County to the Antelope Valley after another court decision approved his move to the same region of LA County before ultimately violating the terms of his release.

“Hubbart was previously placed in this region in 2014 but was subsequently removed for violating conditions of release,” Barger said in a statement, calling his crimes “heinous” and “beyond redemption or rehabilitation.”

“The bottom line is he belongs in a safe and secure facility. Community integration should never have been on the table,” Barger said. “The unincorporated community of Juniper Hills is home to many women and families who work hard and live peaceful lives. Their lives will be turned upside down because of this terrible decision to harbor a known predator.”

When Hubbart moved to Lake LA in 2014, a local resident said she was concerned as a survivor herself.

“It scares the hell out of me,” said Cheryl Holbrook. “When we saw him coming on the street, I literally got the creeps. I wanted to cry. He’s going to commit another crime, he’s going to attack someone again and he’s going to take someone’s life.”

As part of his parole and move there, Hubbart was required to adhere to a curfew, undergo random searches, continue treatment and wear a GPS ankle bracelet. Authorities accused him of violating those terms by letting his ankle monitor’s battery die about a year later. Finally he was picked up by the Ministry of State Hospitals in 2016 for violating the terms of release.

From there, he was again placed in a mental health facility before a Santa Clara County judge approved his parole in March 2023.

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