San Francisco sexual assault convict granted parole after decade in prison
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A man sentenced to life in prison for breaking into a San Francisco apartment and sexually assaulting a sleeping woman has been eligible for parole after serving just over a decade behind bars.
Roberto Antonio Detrinidad was released following an eligibility hearing before the California Parole Hearing Board on January 6, 2026. Unless further action is taken, Detrinidad could be released from San Quentin State Prison in early May.
Details of the hearing, including Detrinidad’s admissions and the panel’s reasons, are summarized in a transcript Obtained by San Francisco Public Safety News.
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A California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officer wears a protective mask while standing guard at the front gate of San Quentin State Prison on June 29, 2020 in San Quentin, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images))
Detrinidad was convicted in connection with an August 2013 attack in which a woman woke up in her apartment on Sacramento Street to find a man entering the building in the middle of the night and sexually assaulting her.
At trial, Detrinidad claimed the encounter was consensual. However, according to the hearing report, he admitted that he lied.
“This was like my Super Bowl offense that night,” Detrinidad told commissioners. “This would be the thing that would finally make me feel like a man.”
Court records show the victim had recently moved to San Francisco and returned home around 4 a.m. after bartending and noticed a man wandering outside who appeared “nervous.” He then went to bed and woke up during the attack.
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Investigators later linked Detrinidad to the crime through DNA recovered from bedding, records show. He was arrested in September 2014 after a database match.
The jury found him guilty of assault with intent to commit a sexual offense while burglarizing a home and he was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. An appeal challenging the conviction was later dismissed.
At his parole hearing in January, San Francisco prosecutor Andrew Clark called the crime a “horrible life crime,” according to a transcript obtained by San Francisco Public Safety News.
“He targeted her and entered her home with the intention of raping her and raped her,” Clark told the panel. “This sexual violence is of great concern to us at the district attorney’s office in San Francisco.”
Prosecutors raised concerns about whether Detrinidad had completed meaningful sex offender treatment programming, specifically addressing sexual violence and relapse prevention, before being deemed eligible for release, according to the hearing transcript.
The victim had attended previous parole hearings and previously told commissioners he feared he would be released.
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“I lost my sense of security. I don’t know if that’s something I can get back,” he said at an earlier hearing, records show. “I don’t believe he has any regrets and I don’t think he will stop.”
He did not attend the hearing in January.
After approximately 20 minutes of deliberation, Commission President Michael Ruff announced the panel’s decision.
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“The panel concluded that the mitigating factors outweighed the aggravating factors and found that Mr. Detrinidad did not pose an unreasonable risk to public safety and was therefore eligible for parole,” Ruff said, according to the transcript. he said.
Fox News Digital reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office to see if the governor plans to intervene.
“The Governor has not yet received this case for review and we cannot comment further on pending cases,” a spokesperson said.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital it had not yet received the lawsuit. (Tayfun Coşkun/Getty Images)
The office emphasized the limits of Newsom’s authority.
“Under state law, the Governor can only revoke parole in murder cases. In cases involving crimes other than murder, the Governor’s only option is to send the decision back to the Board of Parole Hearings (BPH) for review by sitting commissioners,” the spokesperson said.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) reiterated that the governor has not yet received the lawsuit and cannot comment further while the case is pending.
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A close-up of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) patch on a corrections officer’s uniform. (Andrew Kuhn/Merced Sun-Star/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
As background, the Board of Parole Hearings is an independent body that determines whether incarcerated people serving life sentences pose an unreasonable risk to public safety, CDCR said.
Parole was granted in less than 12 percent of scheduled hearings, the department said. According to CDCR data, more than 97 percent of people released after a parole hearing are not convicted of another crime within three years. Less than 3% were convicted of any new misdemeanor or felony during this period, and less than 1% were convicted of a new felony against a person.
CDCR also said recidivism declines sharply with age, and individuals over the age of 60 have the lowest recidivism rates in the correctional system.
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Former Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert, who previously prosecuted high-profile violent crime cases including David Funston, harshly criticized the parole decision.
“She was asleep in her bed in San Francisco, in the safety of her own home,” Schubert wrote in
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“Now the California parole board has determined that he is ready for release.”
Schubert pointed out what he called disturbing details at the parole hearing.
“According to his own parole hearing, Detrinidad had not completed meaningful sex offender programming in years, and the District Attorney warned the panel that he still lacked substantive relapse prevention treatment focused on sexual violence,” he said.
“Let this sink in: A man sentenced to life in prison for breaking into a stranger’s home and sexually assaulting her while she slept is being released even though the key risk factor, sexual violence, has not yet been addressed.”
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“The victims deserve better than this.”
He added: “Why does California release violent sex offenders before they complete serious treatment for the crimes that landed them in prison?”
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The decision also drew criticism from Republican leaders in the state.
California Republican leader Corrin Rankin told Fox News Digital:
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“California Democrats have spent years weakening consequences for serious criminals and putting ideology ahead of public safety. Republicans believe the primary duty of government is to protect law-abiding people, keep violent criminals behind bars, and stand with victims rather than making excuses for the system that has failed them.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Stepheny Price covers crimes including missing persons, murders and immigration crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
