Another sexually violent predator might soon be placed in the Antelope Valley.
A hearing is scheduled next month in the case of Harold Wachter, 63, who served six years in prison in a 2000 case and is now in a state mental hospital. The Department of State Hospitals has recommended that he be placed in a home in the 45300 block of 200th Street East, in the Hi Vista area.
“I am outraged that, despite my direct appeal to the Department of State Hospitals last month, the Antelope Valley is yet again being treated as a dumping ground for a Sexually Violent Predator,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose 5th District includes the Antelope Valley. “There is something systemically broken in our state’s placement system when one region is repeatedly forced to shoulder a disproportionate share of housing the state’s highest-risk offenders. Our desert and rural communities should not be treated as a convenient option for state agencies looking to place individuals in isolated locations. It is unfair and unjust to the families and communities who call the Antelope Valley home.”
Alpine Grange, 8650 East Ave. T-8 in Littlerock, and several rural town councils in the Antelope Valley are hosting a roundtable meeting at 2 p.m. Saturday to address the issue.
Among the confirmed attendees are assemblymembers Tom Lackey and Juan Carrillo, along with representatives from local rural town councils, and Deputy District Attorney Michale DeRose and his staff.
Wachter pleaded guilty on April 27, 2000, to two counts of annoying or molesting a child under age 18, judicial records show. The incident occurred on May 1, 1999. He was sentenced at the Pasadena Courthouse to six years in state prison. He also has a conviction for lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14.
Court records list two other cases concerning Wachter: a 1987 case from the Northeast District (Pasadena area) and a 1986 case from the Pasadena Courthouse.
Prior to Wachter’s release from prison from his most recent conviction, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office sought a civil commitment by filing a Sexually Violent Predator petition against him under the Sexually Violent Predator Act, Welfare and Institutions Code section 6600, et seq. In 2008 Wachter was found by the Los Angeles County Superior Court to be an SVP. He was committed to the custody of the California Department of State Hospitals for a period of two years. In 2010 the current SVP petition was filed. In 2018 Wachter was again found by the Los Angeles County Superior Court to be an SVP. He was committed to the hospital department for an indeterminate period.
In April 2023 the Los Angeles County Superior Court ordered Harold Wachter conditionally released in Los Angeles County under the supervision of the DSH SVP Conditional Release Program. The Los Angeles County Superior court ordered DSH and its agent in charge of the program, Liberty Healthcare, to begin a search for suitable housing within Los Angeles County. Following Liberty Healthcare’s selection of a property, members of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office SVP Unit, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, and County Counsel’s Office participated in a housing committee meeting.
The hospital department recommended the Hi Vista site.
The last sexually violent predator sent to the Antelope Valley was Christopher Hubbart, who last year was placed in a Juniper Hills home.
“The Antelope Valley is a community of families, not a dumping ground for state agencies looking for somewhere to place sexually violent predators,” said state Sen. Suzette Valladares, R-Santa Clarita. “Our children and neighborhoods deserve the same consideration and protection as every other community in Los Angeles County. DSH needs to explain why it selected Lancaster, what risks were considered and why it believes this placement is appropriate. Until our community receives satisfactory answers, I will stand with Lancaster residents in opposing this placement.”
“Antelope Valley families should not be an afterthought when state agencies make decisions involving public safety,” said Lackey, R-Palmdale. “The Department of State Hospitals owes Lancaster residents clear answers about this proposed placement and why this location was chosen. Our residents’ voices matter.”
The placement hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Sept. 10 in Department 113 of the Hollywood Courthouse, 5925 Hollywood Blvd. Only five members of the public, chosen by lottery, may attend in person. Members of the public will not be allowed to directly address the court.
The public may submit email concerns and opinions regarding the proposed location to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office at SVPcomments@da.lacounty.gov, or send a letter to Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Attention: Sex Crimes Division — SVP Unit, 211 West Temple St., 9th floor, Los Angeles, CA, 90012.
Comments will be accepted until 5 p.m. Aug. 26.
“Residents will not even have the opportunity to address the court in person since only five members of the public will be admitted to observe,” Barger said. “That makes written public comment the only voice Antelope Valley families have in this process. I encourage every resident who opposes this placement to submit a comment before the deadline.”
Barger last month submitted a letter to the Department of State Hospitals protesting Wachter’s potential placement in the Antelope Valley and urging it to reconsider. She pointed out that three sexually violent predators had been placed in the region in the past five years, placing what she called a disproportionate and unacceptable burden on a community that comprises only 4% of the county’s population.
“The rural North County simply does not have the resources to absorb another placement,” she wrote. “Critical infrastructure-communication systems, emergency access and transportation is already strained. Cellular and landline service remains inconsistent, internet connectivity is unreliable and these gaps severely hinder residents’ ability to seek help when needed. In an emergency, law enforcement response times are significantly delayed due to distance and terrain. Adding another high-risk individual into this environment dramatically compounds these challenges and stretches limited public safety resources even further.”
Valladares and Lackey have also sent a joint letter to County District Attorney Nathan Hochman opposing the proposed location and asking his office to represent the concerns of Antelope Valley residents before the court. They are also calling for greater public access to information regarding Wachter’s criminal history and the basis for the proposed placement.
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