| For Immediate Release Case # 08WF1575
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Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
SEX OFFENDER SENTENCED TO 40 YEARS TO LIFE FOR BRUTALIZING 66-YEAR-OLD WOMAN AFTER BREAKING INTO HER HUNTINGTON BEACH HOME
*Law enforcement is seeking the public’s help in identifying potential additional victims
SANTA ANA – A registered sex offender was sentenced today to 40 years to life in state prison for breaking into the home of and brutalizing a 66-year-old woman with the intention of sexually assaulting and robbing her. Tracy William Barton, 54, Costa Mesa, was found guilty by a jury April 1, 2010, of one felony count each of assault with the intent to commit a sexual offense during the commission of first degree burglary, first degree burglary, aggravated assault, and sexual battery by restraint.
Barton faces sentencing enhancements and allegations for being a habitual sexual offender, prior felony sex convictions, non-accomplice present during a residential burglary, causing great bodily injury, and committing a crime against a vulnerable victim with a prior conviction. The defendant has three prior strike convictions for forcible rape, kidnapping, and forcible oral copulation from 1991. He has five prior convictions for vehicle theft in 1979, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1988, and a 1977 conviction for vehicle theft in Oregon.
The Huntington Beach Police Department (HBPD) and Orange County District Attorney’s Office (OCDA) are asking for the public’s help in identifying potential additional victims.
Circumstances of the Case
At approximately 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 12, 2008, Barton knocked on the door of 66-year-old Jane Doe’s Huntington Beach home. The defendant worked as a car detailer for the victim’s neighbor. When Jane Doe opened her door, Barton forced his way inside, knocking the victim to the ground. The defendant slammed the victim’s head into a hard surface and hit her in the face.
Barton then dragged the screaming Jane Doe up the stairs into her bedroom. The defendant pushed her to the floor, removed stocking from her lingerie drawer, and bound the victim by her wrists and ankles. Barton removed the victim’s clothing with the intent to sexually assault her.
Before Barton was able to sexually assault Jane Doe, HBPD officers arrived at the scene after receiving a call from a concerned neighbor who heard the terrified victim screaming. Responding officers observed the defendant run out of the front door of Jane Doe’s home and a foot pursuit ensued. The officers caught Barton, who is 6’4” and 240 pounds, and had to use a Taser to subdue the struggling defendant.
Jane Doe suffered a sprained neck and contusions to her face, head, neck, and hands. Barton’s DNA was found under the victim’s fingernails.
Evidence Found in Barton’s Possession
A search of the defendant’s vehicle following his arrest revealed that Barton was in possession of the following items, none of which belong to Jane Doe: women’s gray leggings, a red bra, and white underwear. The defendant’s computer showed that Barton frequently searched for websites involving women who love girdles, ladies in girdles, erotic lingerie, nylons and women, briefs and women, sexual photographs of moms in white underwear, and other similar searches.