A 61-year-old convicted rapist failed in his bid for freedom from a state mental hospital as jurors found him to be a sexually violent predator, according to court records obtained Tuesday.
Jurors deliberated for about three hours, starting on Thursday, before finding Ronald Arthur Rogers a sexually violent predator on Monday, according to court records. Rogers was sent to Coalinga State Hospital to be held there indefinitely.
Under the law, Rogers can file another petition to be freed at a later date.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Peter Finnerty said Rogers is a “habitual offender” who sexually assaulted two women on Aug. 10, 1987. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two years in prison, the prosecutor said.
Within months of being paroled, Rogers sexually assaulted three more women in March of 1989, Finnerty said. He was charged with multiple sex crimes, including forcible rape, as well as kidnapping, and pled guilty in a deal that netted him 15 years in prison, Finnerty said.
All of the victims were either working as prostitutes or had convictions for prostitution at the time of the attacks in the Anaheim area, Finnerty said.
— City News Service