SANTA ANA - Orange County law enforcement are warning the public that a violent, convicted sex offender is scheduled to be released on parole in Orange County after serving 25 years of a 49-year sentence for brutally sexually assaulting two young girls after kidnapping them in broad daylight.
Lawrence Joseph Brown, 52, is scheduled to be released to Orange County from Chino State Prison on Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2010. Despite repeated, persistent efforts by the Orange County District Attorney's Office (OCDA) to have Brown evaluated as a Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) in order to have him civilly committed, the Department of Mental Health (DMH) has failed to take the proper steps to protect the community by submitting a Request to File a Petition, which is required by law in order for the OCDA to legally file an SVP petition.
In order for the OCDA to file an SVP petition to have Brown civilly committed upon completing his criminal sentence, two independent evaluators from DMH must first determine whether the inmate meets the criteria of an SVP. There are three criteria that must be met in order to designate a person as SVP. First, the defendant must have committed at least one sexually violent offense. Second, he/she must be diagnosed with a mental disorder. Finally, it must be found that he/she is likely to re-offend unless he/she is held in custody and treated. DMH has failed to submit the necessary request and accompanying documentation, making it legally impossible for the OCDA to file an SVP petition against him.
"A dangerous, violent sex offender will be a free man to walk the streets of Orange County and prey upon our children. Lawrence Brown - the boogie man of every child and parents' worst nightmare. Our community can't afford to be exposed to this type of danger," stated Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas.
Crimes against Jane Doe #1
Early in the evening on April 19, 1983, Brown abducted 8-year-old Jane Doe #1 while she was playing hide-and-seek near her home with friends. The inmate was 24 years old, 5 feet 11 inches, and weighed 205 pounds. His victim weighed 57 pounds. Brown pulled her in to his red van as she kicked and screamed to get away. Brown was a stranger to his victim and told her that he would hurt her if she did not shut up. He drove her to an unknown location and parked the van. The inmate forced Jane Doe #1 to orally copulate him before removing her underwear and raping her. Brown ejaculated and left semen on the victim's clothing. After the rape, the inmate drove the victim to a parking lot and dropped her off, telling her to go home and warning that he would return and hurt her if she told anyone about the sexual assault.
The Santa Ana Police Department began a massive search for the unknown predator and investigated over 100 red vans as possible leads. The investigation was ongoing in October 1983, when Brown committed another violent sexual assault against a second child.
Crimes against Jane Doe #2
At approximately 7:45 a.m. on Oct. 5, 1983, Brown kidnapped 7-year-old Jane Doe #2 as she was walking to school in Santa Ana. The victim was a 34-pound immigrant from Cambodia and did not know Brown, then 25 years old. He approached her on the street, picked her up, and covered the screaming victim's mouth and nose with his hands as he put her in his red van.
Brown drove the victim to a cemetery and opened the door wide enough to show her where they were. He told Jane Doe #2 that if she didn't do as he said, she would be killed and buried in the cemetery with the other children who had not listened to him. Brown continued to drive for awhile before parking and dragging the victim into the back of the van. He put a knife to her chest and told her he would kill her if she told her parents or the police about him. He also threatened to find her at school the next day and cut her body into little pieces, as he had done with another child. The inmate showed the victim a box containing what appeared to be blood-stained clothing and put a second, larger knife near the box. Brown then slapped Jane Doe #2 and told her to shut up when she began to cry.
Brown placed the victim on a bed in the back of the van and ordered her to undress as he exposed his penis and rubbed her chest and vagina. The inmate began to rape the victim, but became angry that her small size made the rape difficult. He then forcibly sodomized her as she cried. After sodomizing the victim, he forced his penis in her mouth and ejaculated, causing her to vomit. Brown again threatened to kill the victim if she told anyone about the sexual assault and then pushed her out of the van, telling her to walk home. The lost, terrified, crying victim wandered to a nearby market, where an adult found her and called the police.
On Feb. 17, 1984, Brown was arrested after officers observed him driving in a red van matching the description provided by Jane Doe #2. Subsequent investigation revealed that the inmate was responsible for the sex crimes against both Jane Doe #1 and Jane Doe #2.
Conviction and Release from State Prison On Feb. 15, 1985, Brown was found guilty by a jury of two felony counts of kidnapping and five felony counts of forcible sex crimes against a child. The jury also found true the sentencing enhancements that Brown kidnapped both children for the purpose of molesting them, and that he used a deadly weapon and inflicted great bodily injury on Jane Doe #2.
As a result of his conviction, Brown was sentenced to 49 years in state prison on April 1, 1985. He was to receive credit and serve 50 percent of his sentence. Had Brown been convicted today of the same crimes, he would have received a sentence of over 300 years to life in state prison.
The OCDA made consistent and repeated inquiries regarding Brown's release date in the interest of public safety due to the level of violence and perversion exhibited by Brown with the intention of providing relevant SVP assessment materials to DMH. The OCDA was informed that Brown would be eligible for parole in April 2011. In August 2010, the OCDA learned that Brown's release had been advanced to October 2010.
Despite the October 2010 date and without notification to either of his victims or the police department where he would be required to register as a sex offender, Brown was released in Orange County on parole from state prison on April 27, 2010. He was paroled to a friend's house in a residential area on Red Hill Avenue in the City of Tustin, approximately 350 yards from Spirit Academy, a school for children ages 5 to 18 years old. Brown quickly violated his parole by becoming transient and masking his GPS by failing to charge the battery to avoid being monitored. On May, 6, 2010, only 10 days after being released from prison, he was violated on his parole and sent back to state prison.
Efforts by the OCDA to Have Brown Civilly Committed as an SVP Following numerous calls to determine Brown's parole date and learning of the pending October 2010 release, the OCDA sent a letter on Aug. 5, 2010, to DMH containing the inmate's Project Innocence materials. This letter detailed that in March 2009, Brown filed a Project Innocence request with the OCDA claiming that he was not the predator who had committed the vicious crimes against the two little girls. He signed a waiver with his request acknowledging that any evidence obtained as a result of re-testing would be used against him.
The Aug. 5, 2010, letter to DMH explained that the OCDA agreed to re-examine Brown's case using DNA technology that did not exist in 1983. While many of the evidentiary items were degraded and could not be forensically examined, Brown's DNA was positively identified from the sperm that was recovered from Jane Doe #2's underwear. Despite this conclusive DNA finding, in addition to the strong eye-witness testimony, defendant statements, and forensic evidence presented during the 1983 jury trial, Brown continues to deny his guilt. The inmate has demonstrated no remorse or acceptance of responsibility for his crimes.
Despite a specific request by the OCDA, DMH failed to acknowledge receipt of the letter from Aug. 5, 2010. There has been no indication that DMH provided the letter to any SVP evaluator for review or consideration. Again on Aug. 31, 2010, the OCDA sent DMH a letter detailing Brown's brutal crimes. The letter was sent with a lengthy 484-page packet that included police reports, evidence documents, and the Project Innocence information. The OCDA implored DMH to review these materials when conducting an SVP evaluation of Brown and continued to place numerous calls and requests, offering assistance.
Finally, on Sept. 28, 2010, only four days before Brown was set to be released, and after repeated advocacy by the OCDA, DMH placed a 45 day hold on Brown for an SVP evaluation. No information has been made available to the OCDA as to what evidence, if any, was considered in the evaluation.
The OCDA is legally bound from filing an SVP petition without a request from DMH. The inmate is now scheduled to be released from state prison with no immediate available legal recourse to the OCDA.
"Brown knows he can never again be caught violently kidnapping and sodomizing a young girl. Isn't it only logical that next time he will murder his victim so he doesn't return to prison? What does the face of the next victim look like? Whose child are we risking?'" posed Rackauckas. "We cannot be deterred by the absolute failure by the Department of Mental Health to do their job. We are going to use every weapon in our legal arsenal to ensure Brown does not hurt any more people. I'm in the process of drafting legislation with Senator Lou Correa to reform this area of law. This legislation would require the Department on Mental Health to finally do their jobs."
