Rapist Loses Costa Mesa Eviction Fight

In a ruling experts said could ultimately strengthen the reach of Megan’s Law, an Orange County judge on Tuesday upheld a Costa Mesa landlord’s right to evict a convicted rapist whose crimes were revealed to neighbors through fliers distributed by police.

The rapist, Chris Decker, fought to remain in his apartment despite complaints from neighbors, and the ruling set the stage for a legal battle that experts believe could help define what rights sex offenders have under the controversial community disclosure law.

Megan’s Law permits police agencies to inform citizens when a “high risk” sex offender is living near them. But it also sets limits on how the information is used and prohibits discrimination against or harassment of the offender.

Crime-victim groups hailed Orange County Superior Court Judge Geoffrey T. Glass’ ruling. But civil libertarians and legal experts said it could set a dangerous precedent, making it easier for sex offenders to be hounded out of one neighborhood after another.

They said the law has created a phenomenon known as “Megan’s Flight,” in which molesters cannot find permanent housing because each new move brings protests from neighbors.

“If we want someone to re-integrate into society, he needs a job, he needs a place to live . . . he needs to be given a chance, or else the person is driven into the fringes,” said Martin Levine, a law professor at USC.

But the landlord’s attorney, Richard Coombs, termed the dispute a “standard eviction case” and said the landlord was simply exercising his right to evict someone whom he believed posed a threat to neighbors.

Coombs argued in court that Decker had a month-to-month lease and that the landlord needed no reason to force him out of the apartment.

“This may show that the argument that sex offenders are a privileged class of criminal is not going to go very far in the courts,” he said.

In testimony last week, landlord Robert Stellrecht Jr. said he initiated an eviction action after tenants complained about living next to someone whom police flyers described as a “high risk offender.” Stellrecht said a few neighbors told him that Decker bothered them with unwanted advances--a charge Decker’s attorney strongly denies.

A court clerk announced Glass’ decision Tuesday without releasing a written decision, which is pending. Some legal experts said the decision pushes the boundaries of Megan’s Law and that Decker’s situation could make a good test case in determining the limits of the law.

“Megan’s Law was designed to inform the neighborhood of potentially dangerous persons in its midst,” said Robert Pugsley, a professor at Southwestern University School of Law. “It was not designed to result in a continuing series of evictions and removals of these people from their dwellings as long as they remain law-abiding.”

Decker served five years in prison for the 1977 rape of a 31-year-old Garden Grove woman and the sexual assault of a 51-year-old Newport Beach woman.

In September, one day after police posted fliers in his Costa Mesa neighborhood identifying him as a “high-risk” sex offender, he was given a 30-day notice to vacate the two-bedroom apartment that he shares with a roommate.

T. Matthew Phillips, Decker’s attorney, said his client plans to vigorously appeal the decision. Decker, who has been serving a four-month prison sentence on a parole violation for drug use, was unavailable for comment.

In addition to upholding the eviction, the judge ordered Decker to pay the landlord $4,575 in back rent and attorney fees. The ruling does not impact other Megan’s Law cases unless it is later upheld by higher courts.

The ruling met with strong support from some victims’ rights organizations, which said a community is justified in forcing out a resident who has committed brutal crimes.

Ray Montee, executive director of the National Assn. for Crime Victims Rights, said people who defend the rights of sex offenders are off base.

“These people should be willing to let sex offenders move in next door” to them, he said. “Otherwise they should just shut up and let people have access and control over who is their neighbor.”

Out of about 110 sex offenders living in Costa Mesa, Decker is the only one classified by the state Department of Justice as “high risk,” according to police. Countywide, law enforcement agencies have publicized information on several high-risk people, and on at least four occasions community members have rallied to oust the offenders from their neighborhoods.

Child molester Sidney Landau has been forced to move out of several North County neighborhoods because of publicity over Megan’s Law. Each time he moves to a new motel, police send out fliers and neighbors stage protests.

For the most part, the molesters and rapists have bowed to community pressures. Decker, however, has stood firm.

Megan’s Law is named after a New Jersey 7-year-old who was raped and murdered by a convicted sex offender who lived across the street. Under the law, sexual predators are required to register with authorities and alert them to any moves.

Police departments are handling Megan’s Law differently, with some being much more aggressive about posting warning notices than others.

Costa Mesa Police Lt. Ron Smith said the department stands behind its decision to notify neighbors but said it has no position on the judge’s ruling.

“We felt it was important that the public have the information so they can do what the law says, protect themselves and protect their children,” he said.