Violent sex offender Christopher Hubbart is released

HOLLYWOOD – On Wednesday, September 4, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced that Christopher Hubbart will be released from the Department of State Hospitals (DSH) and will have a commitment hearing in October.

In March 2023, over objections from the LADA office, the Santa Clara County Superior Court granted conditional release, resulting in Hubbart's return to Los Angeles. The Santa Clara County Superior Court ruled that Hubbart should reside in Los Angeles County, setting the stage for his potential release to Los Angeles County.

The decision transfers responsibility for Hubbart's placement to the Los Angeles County Superior Court, which will make the final decision on his placement. After the Santa Clara County Superior Court granted a conditional release, DSH and Liberty Healthcare, a health and human services company, began searching for suitable housing.

“It is both irresponsible and unjust to continue to release sexually violent offenders into underserved communities like the Antelope Valley,” said District Attorney Gascón. “Repeatedly placing these individuals in the same community shows a blatant disregard for the safety and well-being of our residents. Our Assistant District Attorneys will continue to oppose Mr. Hubbart's placement in the Antelope Valley. We must demand more from our justice system and ensure that decisions are made in the best interest of our communities while exploring alternative locations for these placements.”

In 1973, 1982 and 1990, Hubbart, known as the “Pillowcase Rapist,” was convicted in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties of a series of rapes and other sex crimes in the region.
Prior to his release, the Santa Clara District Attorney's Office filed a civil suit against him as a “sexually violent predator” under the Sexually Violent Predator Act, which led to his commitment to the state hospital system in 2000.

He used pillowcases to muffle his victims' screams. He admitted to committing more than 40 rapes between 1971 and 1982, some of them in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2014, Hubbart was released from Coalinga State Hospital to a home in the Antelope Valley. Since his release, he has been required to wear a GPS ankle bracelet and submit to random searches and a strict curfew.

The LADA office notes on its website that inmates convicted of a sex offense (qualifying conviction) who are scheduled to be released on parole from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) within six months are referred to the Department of State Hospitals (DSH), where they undergo a psychiatric evaluation by at least two experts who assess whether the inmate meets the criteria for sexually violent offender (SVP).

In addition to the qualifying conviction, the SVP criterion requires a diagnosable mental disorder and the likelihood that the person will commit acts of sexual violence while in custody without appropriate treatment for their mental disorder.

If DSH determines that an individual meets the SVP criteria, they will be referred to the Sexually Violent Predator Unit of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, which will determine whether to file a request for civil commitment to a closed mental institution under the Welfare & Institutions Code. The SVP Unit is a unit of the Sex Crimes Division comprised of highly experienced and specially trained prosecutors who handle all aspects of SVP commitment in court.

Once a court or jury finds an individual to be an SVP beyond reasonable doubt, the individual is sent to DSH where he or she can receive sex offender treatment. The SVP remains at DSH until a court determines that he or she is either ready for community-based treatment (conditional release) under the supervision of DSH's Conditional Release Program (CONREP) or no longer poses a danger to the community (unconditional release).

A hearing to determine Hubbart's detention is scheduled for October 1 at 1:30 p.m. in Department 113 at the Hollywood Courthouse.