longrifleman
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VACAVILLE
Angry, frightened residents gird for arrival of released serial rapist
Convict to wear tracking device -- cops offer tips to community
Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, May 7, 2004
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Kari Chavez, a 32-year-old Vacaville manicurist, walked into a gun shop Thursday and bought a .357-caliber Magnum revolver.
"And I won't hesitate to use it if he walks into my house," she said.
Chavez was referring to 48-year-old serial rapist Patrick Ghilotti, who within days is expected to move in across the street from her, her husband, Frank, and their 3-year-old daughter, Alyssa.
Her blunt words summed up the emotions of many in Vacaville after a Marin County judge on Wednesday made Ghilotti the third sexually violent predator to be released from the state's 8-year-old mandatory treatment program for convicted sex offenders at Atascadero State Hospital.
Ghilotti is to move into his wife's Silvey Acres Drive home "at the earliest practicable time" after he agrees to a list of conditions that include wearing a tracking device at all times, wrote Judge Stephen Graham.
The state has struggled mightily to find places where sexually violent predators can live without being chased away by furious residents. Following suit, Vacaville neighbors vowed Thursday to make their city of 95,000 unlivable for Ghilotti. They said Ghilotti was too dangerous to be released and, at any rate, shouldn't live in Solano County when he committed his crimes in Marin County.
State Department of Health spokeswoman Nora Romero said her office had tried unsuccessfully to find Ghilotti an apartment or motel in Marin County. That didn't sit well with folks in Vacaville.
"The neighbors' property values are destroyed, their way of lives are destroyed, and the court doesn't seem to care," Vacaville Mayor Len Augustine said at a City Hall news conference. "I just hope he decides Vacaville is not the place for him."
Neighbors hung signs outside their homes reading "Experiment with rehabilitation somewhere else" and "Nightmare on Sylvie Acres." Lucio Cortez said she and her husband, who have two children, ages 2 and 7, had told their landlord they were moving. Bob and Helen Beougher said they were installing security doors and windows and an alarm system.
Bob Beougher also said he was so frustrated that he couldn't comfort his wife, who spent much of the day in tears.
"I can't help her," he said. Pointing to the added security measures at their home, he added, "I have to build a prison."
Police were providing counseling in English and Spanish to frightened residents, going door to door to advise people on door locks and lighting and vowing to increase patrols through the neighborhood. City officials are studying whether they can seek an injunction barring Ghilotti's release to Vacaville.
Ghilotti's wife, Janet Frankhouser, who was an employee at Atascadero when they met, has declined interview requests. His Marin County public defender, George Shea, did not return a phone call Thursday.
Ghilotti was convicted in 1979 of raping three San Rafael women and became known as the "Lincoln Avenue Rapist." He served three years in prison.
He was convicted again in 1985 of raping a Ross woman and served 12 years. In March 1988 Ghilotti became one of 467 people who have been placed in the sexually violent predator program, and he received intensive therapy and surgical castration.
Under his release, Ghilotti must wear a satellite tracking system, submit to random drug tests and searches and cannot attend any of a list of large Marin County public events, including the county fair. After a year, he will be evaluated and becomes eligible for unconditional release.
Ghilotti is the third sexual predator to be released from Atascadero. Brian DeVries, 45, lives in a trailer at Soledad State Prison. Cary Verse, 33, lives in a San Jose motel after being booted from housing in Mill Valley and Oakland amid local outcry.
VACAVILLE
Angry, frightened residents gird for arrival of released serial rapist
Convict to wear tracking device -- cops offer tips to community
Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, May 7, 2004
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kari Chavez, a 32-year-old Vacaville manicurist, walked into a gun shop Thursday and bought a .357-caliber Magnum revolver.
"And I won't hesitate to use it if he walks into my house," she said.
Chavez was referring to 48-year-old serial rapist Patrick Ghilotti, who within days is expected to move in across the street from her, her husband, Frank, and their 3-year-old daughter, Alyssa.
Her blunt words summed up the emotions of many in Vacaville after a Marin County judge on Wednesday made Ghilotti the third sexually violent predator to be released from the state's 8-year-old mandatory treatment program for convicted sex offenders at Atascadero State Hospital.
Ghilotti is to move into his wife's Silvey Acres Drive home "at the earliest practicable time" after he agrees to a list of conditions that include wearing a tracking device at all times, wrote Judge Stephen Graham.
The state has struggled mightily to find places where sexually violent predators can live without being chased away by furious residents. Following suit, Vacaville neighbors vowed Thursday to make their city of 95,000 unlivable for Ghilotti. They said Ghilotti was too dangerous to be released and, at any rate, shouldn't live in Solano County when he committed his crimes in Marin County.
State Department of Health spokeswoman Nora Romero said her office had tried unsuccessfully to find Ghilotti an apartment or motel in Marin County. That didn't sit well with folks in Vacaville.
"The neighbors' property values are destroyed, their way of lives are destroyed, and the court doesn't seem to care," Vacaville Mayor Len Augustine said at a City Hall news conference. "I just hope he decides Vacaville is not the place for him."
Neighbors hung signs outside their homes reading "Experiment with rehabilitation somewhere else" and "Nightmare on Sylvie Acres." Lucio Cortez said she and her husband, who have two children, ages 2 and 7, had told their landlord they were moving. Bob and Helen Beougher said they were installing security doors and windows and an alarm system.
Bob Beougher also said he was so frustrated that he couldn't comfort his wife, who spent much of the day in tears.
"I can't help her," he said. Pointing to the added security measures at their home, he added, "I have to build a prison."
Police were providing counseling in English and Spanish to frightened residents, going door to door to advise people on door locks and lighting and vowing to increase patrols through the neighborhood. City officials are studying whether they can seek an injunction barring Ghilotti's release to Vacaville.
Ghilotti's wife, Janet Frankhouser, who was an employee at Atascadero when they met, has declined interview requests. His Marin County public defender, George Shea, did not return a phone call Thursday.
Ghilotti was convicted in 1979 of raping three San Rafael women and became known as the "Lincoln Avenue Rapist." He served three years in prison.
He was convicted again in 1985 of raping a Ross woman and served 12 years. In March 1988 Ghilotti became one of 467 people who have been placed in the sexually violent predator program, and he received intensive therapy and surgical castration.
Under his release, Ghilotti must wear a satellite tracking system, submit to random drug tests and searches and cannot attend any of a list of large Marin County public events, including the county fair. After a year, he will be evaluated and becomes eligible for unconditional release.
Ghilotti is the third sexual predator to be released from Atascadero. Brian DeVries, 45, lives in a trailer at Soledad State Prison. Cary Verse, 33, lives in a San Jose motel after being booted from housing in Mill Valley and Oakland amid local outcry.
:banghead: 
People taking responsibility for themselves without snide comments or hysteria about "THE CHILDREN" ? Wow, this article is a major victory.
