S.D. County Off-Limits to Kidnaper

Convicted child kidnaper Robert Gene Edwards will not only be barred from Coronado when he is paroled next year but also will be ordered to stay out of San Diego and its neighboring counties, state prison officials said Wednesday.

Les Johnson, a spokesman for the state Department of Corrections, said the department decided to extend the ban on Edwards’ travels after Coronado residents complained that keeping him out of their city was not enough.

“As the public outrage grew louder it became more apparent that his successful parole would be jeopardized there,” Johnson said.

Johnson would not reveal the county to which Edwards would be sent when he is paroled Jan. 8.

“Because of the notoriety of the case and the fact that we’re trying to ensure a successful parole, we’re not going to publicize where he will be going,” Johnson said.

Edwards snatched a 3-year-old girl from her family’s Coronado motel in 1981 and then kept her in a box for nine days and in his bed naked at night. He was arrested by Police Chief Jerry Boyd when the chief posed as a relative carrying about $2,000 in ransom demanded by Edwards.

Edwards was convicted of kidnaping for ransom in 1982 and sentenced to life imprisonment, but the conviction was overturned because the judge made a mistake in his instructions to the jury. Edwards was convicted again in a second trial, but only of simple kidnaping, and he was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Boyd said Wednesday he was pleased that the state had decided to keep Edwards far away from Coronado for the three years he will be on parole. The Department of Corrections had announced Oct. 25 that Edwards would be paroled to San Diego County but ordered to stay away from Coronado.

“There was a concern even after the (parole) board said no to Coronado but yes to San Diego County,” Boyd said. “How do you enforce that? We can’t watch him all the time and we shouldn’t. The fact that he’s not even going to be in the county will, I think, alleviate some concerns.”

Karen Adams, a Coronado resident and member of Friends of Children, a group formed after the kidnaping, said she was “wonderfully amazed” at the state’s decision.

“I wasn’t sure they would listen to us,” Adams said. “I didn’t know how hard we needed to scream.

“The children and lots of parents in Coronado are going to be very excited about that ruling. We worked very hard to let people know how we felt about that man.”

Adams and others collected thousands of signatures on petitions and sent them to Gov. George Deukmejian and the Department of Corrections. Others telephoned state officials to complain. Recently, she said, more children began writing letters as well, asking that Edwards be sent elsewhere.

“Maybe that made the difference,” she said.