Santa Cruz County cities fight proposal to house sexually violent predator in city
By Ricardo Tovar
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SANTA CRUZ, California (KSBW) — The City of Santa Cruz says it strongly opposes the California Department of State Hospitals’ proposal to place a twice-convicted rapist into its city.
The California Department of State Hospitals recently issued a formal proposal for the Santa Cruz County Superior Court to consider releasing Michael Cheek, a Sexually Violent Predator, to a hotel located at 111 Ocean Street in Santa Cruz.
However, the Santa Cruz hotel is a backup option if a hotel in Watsonville, located at 970 Main Street, is no longer a viable option, per the city of Santa Cruz.
“The City of Santa Cruz, the SCPD, and the Santa Cruz City Attorney’s Office are united with the Santa Cruz District Attorney’s Office in forceful opposition to this placement proposal,” said the city of Santa Cruz in a media statement.
Michael Cheek, now in his 70s, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 1980 kidnapping and rape of a 21-year-old woman in Santa Cruz County. In 1981, Cheek escaped from a probation violation proceeding in Contra Costa County and raped a 15-year-old girl in Lake County.
He has been declared a sexually violent predator under the SVP Act. Sexually violent predators may be considered for conditional release under supervision.
Proposed SVP placements must be more than a quarter-mile from any K-12 school, including private schools and homeschool programs.
“The City of Santa Cruz strongly opposes placing Mr. Cheek at 111 Ocean Street and will take all appropriate legal steps in furtherance of that opposition,” said the City of Santa Cruz police.
They gave the following reasons:
Cheek should not have any contact with minors, yet the proposed location is extremely close to at least a dozen youth-serving facilities, including parks, beaches, a preschool and a youth center.
Cheek also should not live in a hotel setting. The city said its understanding is that GPS monitoring would not be able to ensure he is actually in his room, and hotel guests would be unaware they could encounter him on the property. The proposed location is frequently occupied by families and children, creating unavoidable contact with potential victims. It is also near other visitor-serving motels.
In addition, the city said 111 Ocean Street is a low-cost visitor accommodation in Santa Cruz’s coastal access zone. Housing Cheek would require a coastal development permit under the California Coastal Act.
The city also objected to focusing on Santa Cruz County as the location for Cheek’s potential housing. Officials said Cheek’s connection to Santa Cruz County is that he committed sexually violent crimes there, and noted that he has the same connection to Lake County.
A previous proposed placement in Aptos was withdrawn in 2024 after the property owner backed out of an offer to rent to Cheek, according to the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office. That proposal involved a home near Spreckels Drive, about four blocks from Rio Del Mar Beach, and drew opposition from neighbors.
At the time, Liberty Healthcare of California told Santa Cruz County Superior Court that the homeowner had rescinded the rental agreement, making the property unavailable for placement. Prosecutors said then that they were pleased to hear the proposal had been withdrawn because of what they described as significant public safety concerns.
The City of Watsonville also issued the following statement:
“The California Department of State Hospitals has proposed placing Michael Cheek, a designated Sexually Violent Predator (SVP), at a hotel located at 970 Main Street in Watsonville as his primary residence.
“The City of Watsonville strongly opposes this proposed placement and does not believe it is in the best interests of our community.
“A hotel setting is not appropriate for SVP placement and raises serious public safety concerns. The proposed site is located in a busy commercial corridor near youth and family-serving spaces, and hotel guests would be unaware they could encounter an SVP on the premises.
“We are actively working to organize a town hall to gather the community’s voice, but in the meantime, we urge residents to submit comments to the Santa Cruz County Superior Court by April 27, 2026, at criminalinfo@santacruzcourt.org. A placement hearing is scheduled for May 22, 2026.”
The Department of State Hospitals’ response to written comments must be filed with the court by May 11, 2026.
A placement hearing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. May 22, 2026, in Department 6 of Santa Cruz County Superior Court.
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