A sexually violent predator known as the Pillowcase Rapist is now once again a resident of the Antelope Valley.
Christopher Hubbart, who has a history of violent sex crimes against women with convictions in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties in 1973, 1982 and 1990, was released and placed at a court-designated housing facility in the Juniper Hill community near Pearblossom on Friday.
Hubbart, whose morbid nickname came from his modus operandi of covering his victims’ heads with pillowcases while raping and assaulting them, had previously lived near Palmdale before returning to a state hospital for failing to meet the terms of his release.
But in 2023, after a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge deemed Hubbart suitable for conditional release again, the Department of State Hospitals recommended that Hubbart be placed in Los Angeles County.
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As Antelope Valley neighbors as well as Los Angeles County officials have been strongly opposing the release, the Sheriff’s Department said the Palmdale Station is “fully committed to ensuring the safety of residents” in the area.
Enforcement presence in the surrounding rural communities of Juniper Hills, Pearblossom and Littlerock.
Supervisor Kathryn Barger also called Hubbart’s release “unacceptable.”
“His violent history speaks for itself, and placing him in a remote area with limited law enforcement resources, poor cell service, and insufficient security measures puts residents at unnecessary risk,” said Barger in a statement while urging her constituents to be vigilant and report any issues.
People address any concerns to Liberty Healthcare at (800) 331-7122 or liberty@libertyhealth.com, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
“The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department opposed this placement during the hearing, highlighting Mr. Hubbart’s criminal history, the seclusion of the rural area, limited cellphone and radio reception, and the absence of sufficient nighttime lighting and surveillance cameras,” the department said in a statement Friday, adding there will be additional law
Hubbart has admitted to raping 40 women decades ago. He was sent to Atascadero State Hospital in 1972 after a court deemed him a "mentally disordered sex offender."
Seven years later, doctors said he posed no threat and released him. Over the next two years, he raped another 15 women in the San Francisco Bay Area, according to court documents. Hubbart was again imprisoned, then paroled in 1990.
After accosting a woman in Santa Clara County, he was sent back to prison and then to Coalinga State Hospital. Hubbart was designated a sexually violent predator in Santa Clara County in 1996.
His lawyers argued in 2014 that Hubbart's continuing detention violated his rights to due process, sparking a battle over where he should live. As a condition of his release into the northern LA County community of Palmdale, Hubbart was required to wear an ankle monitor and attend regular therapy sessions and make quarterly reports to a judge. Protesters gathered regularly outside the home in opposition to Hubbart's release in the community.
He was back in custody a few years later after a judge revoked his conditional release.
“Continuing to release sexually violent predators into underserved communities like the Antelope Valley is both irresponsible and unjust,” said District Attorney George Gascón. “Repeatedly placing these individuals in the same community shows a blatant disregard for the safety and well-being of our residents. Our deputy district attorneys will persist in opposing Mr. Hubbart’s placement in the Antelope Valley. We must demand more from our judicial system, ensuring decisions serve the best interests of our communities while exploring alternative locations for these placements.”
