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By Jennifer Squires
Posted: 05/25/2010 04:12:57 PM PDT
Updated: 05/25/2010 04:16:00 PM PDT

LANCASTER - A state assemblyman in Southern California is fighting to keep a convicted child killer from Santa Cruz County out of his community.

Donald Schmidt, 38, and the oldest ward of the state, is set to be paroled in a month to a group home in Lancaster.

But state Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, said he doesn't think it's appropriate for Schmidt to be released more than 300 miles away from Santa Cruz, where he murdered a little girl two decades ago.

"This is not something that's fair," said Knight, a former Los Angeles police officer. "It's not something we want. We have our own who do crimes in our area ... and we have to deal with them."

Schmidt's case has long been unique and this is just the latest battle over where to place a man who has spent more than half of his life in the state juvenile justice system.

Schmidt has been diagnosed as a sexual sadist, pedophile and sociopath.

In 1988, Schmidt, then a 16-year-old Fremont runaway high on methamphetamine, sodomized a 3-year-old girl and drowned her in a bathtub at a Lompico house where he was a guest. The next year, he was convicted as a juvenile and entered the California Youth Authority, where juveniles are typically not incarcerated beyond age 25.

But the Santa Cruz County District Attorney's Office relied on a little-used provision of state law to extend his incarceration because attorney's there believe his mental disorders make him a danger to the public. He's allowed a trial on that determination every two years, but has remained behind bars longer than any other juvenile inmate in state history.

Schmidt gave up three bids for freedom and lost two others at trial. Five years ago, Schmidt was granted parole to a transitional facility in San Jose. District Attorney Bob Lee successfully challenged the decision and Schmidt remained jailed.

But 11 months ago - and after two juries failed to find that Schmidt met the legal requirement to keep him behind bars - the D.A.'s Office cut a deal with Schmidt. He would serve one more year in the California Division of Juvenile Justice, then be on parole for three years and abide by a long list of conditions.

However, a judge ruled in 1989 that Schmidt had been charged with the wrong sex crime and an appeals court overturned the sodomy conviction, meaning he will not have to register as a sex offender when released.

When the parole agreement was made, District Attorney Bob Lee said Schmidt likely would be released to a halfway house in Los Angeles County because he had spent the majority of his incarceration at Herman G. Stark Youth Correctional Facility in Chino, about 100 miles south of Lancaster.

Schmidt's attorney William Weigel, at the time, called the decision to place his client on parole for three years "fantastic."

"All we've ever wanted is a chance for him to get out on parole," Weigel, a Santa Cruz public defender who has handled Schmidt's appeals since 2000, said in June.

But Knight said Lancaster residents aware of Schmidt's impending release are upset and he has concerns Schmidt may re-offend, despite undergoing years of treatment through the state juvenile correctional system.

"I absolutely have faith in the justice system," Knight said. "I do not have faith in people who rape and kill kids."

Tuesday, Weigel said both he and Schimdt were looking forward to the inmate's June parole date. He was not aware of Knight's efforts to change or postpone his client's release.

Knight said his staff has been talking with state correctional and parole officials but, as of Tuesday, no changes had been made to Schmidt's parole plan.

"We're not accepting this by any means," Knight said. "We would love to keep him behind bars, but if he's going to be released he's got to be released in an area where the crime was committed."

Donald Schmidt

Conditions of release

Schmidt will have to abide by a long list of conditions when he is paroled in June. These are some of those requirements for his three-year parole period:

Tell his parole officer who he is dating or intimate with - including name, phone number and address - so the officer can contact that person and share Schmidt's history.

Wear a GPS tracker.

Cannot use the Internet to communicate with minors or access pornography.

Must live in an approved halfway house and can't move without permission from his parole officer.

Cannot use drugs or alcohol, must be tested for drugs and alcohol and must stay away from places where drugs are used.

Attend counseling for anger management, substance abuse and sex offender treatment.

Cannot be around minors.

SOURCE: Santa Cruz County District Attorney's Office

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