East County residents united Sunday to protest the placement of a sexually violent predator nicknamed the "Bolder Than Most Rapist" into their remote community.
Alvin Quarles was sentenced to 50 years in prison for crimes committed in 1989 but Judge David Gill granted Quarles' release from a state hospital on Oct. 12 after serving just over half of his sentence.
The Department of State Hospitals decided to place him in the Jacumba Hot Springs area, prompting outrage for residents of the East County community.
"I’m fed up with East County San Diego being used as a dumping ground," resident Julia Bishop said.
She lives about 20 minutes from where Quarles will be released and said he is not the first sexual predator to be placed into their community.
"I’m angry, I’m disappointed in our elected officials and our judges, and, frankly, I have become concerned for the safety of all of our residents that live in that area of East County," she said.
She and other residents gathered at Tio Leo's restaurant in San Diego to urge officials to consider keeping Quarles in a mental treatment facility.
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Quarles has been diagnosed with Sexual Sadism Disorder, Voyeuristic Disorder and Antisocial Personality Disorder, according to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, which opposed his release.
He was convicted in a series of sexual assaults in the 1980s that involved 14 different victims. Four of his victims were raped at knifepoint.
When Quarles was up for parole in July 2014, the District Attorney's Office filed a petition to have him civilly committed as a Sexually Violent Predator to a state mental facility.
One of Quarles' victims, Mary Taylor, was at Sunday's community meeting and said she is fighting for her rights and the rights of other victims.
"I’m here because every step along the way when decisions were made, the wrong decision was made," Taylor said. "I’m not accepting it anymore – I’m done with accepting it. It’s time we tell the criminal justice system victims have rights."
According to Taylor, the series of "Bolder Than Most" attacks all happened while Quarles was out of prison on parole for rape crimes.
Taylor also said she and other of Quarles' victims were not notified of his release, which is in violation of Marsy's Law, which provides additional rights to crime victims.
She has started an online petition to stop Quarles' release.
Judge Gill ordered Quarles release to the Jacumba Hot Springs residence at 43050 Desert Rose Ranch Road be completed by Nov. 30, where he will be supervised in a conditional release program.
The location is near where the state placed convicted rapist and child molester Herman Smith in April.
