A sexually violent predator was removed from a home in Jacumba Hot Springs in rural eastern San Diego County for allegedly violating the terms of his outpatient release, authorities said Monday.
Gary Snavely, a 52-year-old convicted child molester, was ordered released last December after filing a petition for conditional release.
He was removed from his Jacumba Hot Springs home on July 2.
Deputy District Attorney Kristen Spieler said officials supervising Snavely determined he was not completely honest with his treatment team and deemed to be in violation of his outpatient status.
An Aug. 27 hearing will be held determine if Snavely's outpatient status should be revoked and he should be sent back to a state mental hospital.
"This monster never belonged in the community in the first place," said Supervisor Dianne Jacob, who district includes eastern San Diego County. "Word that he violated the terms of his release comes as no surprise and is the latest proof that sexually violent predators have no place in Jacumba Hot Springs or any other community.
"What makes this even more outrageous is that it's not the first time Snavely has broken the rules of his placement," she said. "He needs to be locked up for good."
Last August, Judge Louis Hanoian determined that Snavely could be safely released in San Diego County as long as he continued to get treatment.
In October, state hospital officials proposed placing Snavely in Borrego Springs, but that plan was withdrawn and replaced with the proposal to house Snavely in Jacumba Hot Springs.
Snavely was convicted in 1987 of molesting two Orange County girls younger than 10 and served three years in prison. He was released but violated his parole and was returned to prison.
In 1996 while living in San Diego after his release, Snavely was convicted of failing to register as a sex offender and was sentenced to 16 months behind bars.
Prior to his release from prison, the District Attorney's Office filed a petition to civilly commit Snavely as a sexually violent predator. In 1998, Snavely was found to be a sexually violent predator and was ordered to undergo treatment at a state mental hospital.
In 2008, the court granted Snavely's request for conditional release, but he was returned to the hospital several months later for medication misuse.
In April 2014, Snavely filed a petition for conditional release, which Hanoian granted after hearing testimony from two mental health experts and reviewing reports from other experts.
