Summary: An Orange County court found extraordinary circumstances to authorize relocating Lawtis Rhoden, a sexually violent predator, to Twentynine Palms. Rhoden, who has no ties to San Bernardino County or the Morongo Basin, was convicted of raping five girls, aged 13 to 17, between 1969 and 1984 in three states. He has spent the better part of the last 20 years in a treatment facility specifically for sexual predators. The City of Twentynine Palms held a special meeting with representatives from the District Attorney’s Office, Sheriff’s Department, Congressman Jay Obernolte, and County Supervisor Dawn Rowe to discuss the situation and what residents can do as a community to fight this relocation.
