The predator who committed sexual violence will be temporarily released

A San Diego Superior Court judge ordered the temporary release of a man described as a sexually violent predator because authorities failed to provide him with a place to live.

However, Merle Wakefield’s release won’t be happening anytime soon. His case will come before Judge Yvonne Campos on November 20. At that time, authorities are expected to present a plan for Wakefield’s release, which could include placing the 67-year-old in a motel. If Wakefield was eventually released temporarily, Campos ordered that he have 24-hour personal security.

Campos’ order to release Wakefield followed three previous attempts to find him accommodation; The last offer was in July. placed it in Poway, but this decision was quickly rescinded. The court rejected an offer to place him at Mount Helix in 2021, and another facility was canceled that year when he was sent back to Coalinga State Hospital for further treatment as a sexually violent predator.

San Diego has twice previously ordered the temporary release of people identified as sexually violent predators; both were last December. But in both cases, state officials were able to find permanent housing before the men were released, and they now live in the same house in Jacumba Springs.

Sexually violent predators, or SVPs, have been convicted of a violent sex crime and have been diagnosed with a mental disorder that makes them more likely to reoffend. This is a relatively small group, accounting for less than 1% of the state’s sex offender population.

They are sent to Coalinga State Hospital, where they can choose to participate in a treatment program aimed at curbing criminal impulses. Participation could eventually lead to parole. But that requires approval from a judge under strict restrictions, and they must return to the county that sent them to jail in the first place.

The Public Defender’s Office, which represents Wakefield, declined to comment on his case Thursday.

Wakefield was convicted of lewd acts with a child under 14 in 1981, then convicted of rape by force, violence or fear in 1990, according to the District Attorney’s Office. He was officially identified as a sexually violent predator following his release from prison in 1998.

The District Attorney’s Office opposes the proposal to temporarily release Wakefield. “We believe that transient releases pose a significant risk to the public and do not allow for appropriate monitoring and control,” the office said in a statement.

The office said it is the duty of the Department of State Hospitals and its contractor, Liberty Healthcare, which treats people deemed sexually violent predators, to find appropriate housing for people granted parole.

“We will continue to oppose temporary releases and insist that the Department of State Hospitals fulfill its duty to find appropriate stable placements,” the District Attorney’s Office said.

State Hospital Administration officials said Thursday that they do not place people identified as sexually violent predators in a community “until the court determines that it is safe and appropriate.”