A family is fighting to stop the possible release of a Riverside man who was sentenced to prison for molesting and kidnapping a 5-year-old girl.
Charles William Mix, 69, was sentenced to 350 years in prison for the 2003 kidnapping.
The victim, who is now 27 years old, still isn’t ready to speak on the incident, but her sister, Claira Stansbury, said the events changed her family’s life forever.
“She has to deal with this for the rest of her life and she has to learn to cope with what happened to her for the rest of her life,” Stansbury said.
On the morning of June 2, 2003, the girl’s father reported to Riverside Police that his roommate, Mix, had kidnapped his daughter, prompting an AMBER Alert.
Mix and the girl’s father were friends and had been living together in Riverside at the time.
The next day, the pair was located hundreds of miles away in Richfield, Utah after a passerby reported seeing him and the girl. Mix had transported the girl across state lines in a stolen vehicle.
During the investigation, authorities discovered sexually explicit photos Mix had taken of the young girl along with love letters he wrote to her.
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The victim was 5 years old when she was kidnapped and molested by her father’s friend, Charles William Mix, in 2003. -
In June 2003, Riverside Police responded to the home the young girl shared with the suspect and her father. (KTLA) -
Police investigated the suspect’s vehicle after Charles Mix was located in Utah with the 5-year-old girl he kidnapped from Riverside, California. (KTLA) -
Charles William Mix, is seen in an old booking photo from the Riverside Police Department. -
The girl’s father spoke to reporters after an AMBER Alert was issued for his missing daughter in Riverside in June 2003. (KTLA) -
In June 2003, Riverside Police responded to the home the young girl shared with the suspect and her father. (KTLA) -
Charles William Mix, is seen in a photo from the Riverside Police Department.
In a police interview taken by Utah authorities, Mix told them that he slept in the nude with the child, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Mix was sentenced to 350 years in prison after being convicted on a variety of charges including willful child cruelty, kidnapping to commit robbery or rape, lewd acts with a child under 14, burglary and more.
Now, two decades later under the Elderly Parole Program, Mix could be a free man once again. The Elderly Parole Program is a relatively new law that refers inmates who are 50 years or older and who have served 20 years of continuous incarceration to the board of parole hearings.
For the victim’s family, the idea of Mix being released from prison is beyond distressing.
“A lot of trauma has been reopened,” Stansbury said. “Stuff that we have healed from that we have to dive back into.”
Stanley Goldman, a professor at Loyola Law School, explained more about the parole program.
“The expense of keeping elderly people in prison compared to the chance that they’ll commit another crime weighed in favor, the legislature concluded, of creating a law saying that you should release these people on parole so we get them off our books, in effect,” he said.
Goldman noted the board will weigh a number of things before deciding on a parole release.
“The parole board will be looking at obviously the severity of the crime but also whether he has taken responsibility, shown remorse for the crime,” Goldman said. “And that’s still not enough if they think he’s a danger to commit this sort of crime again, that he’s a danger to society. Does he pose a reasonable risk?”
For Stansbury and her family, they are doing everything can to ensure Mix remains behind bars while never forgetting the painful past.
“The legislators all want to talk about how terrible life sentences are for this criminal, these types of criminals, I don’t think they’re actually looking at life sentences of the victims who didn’t have a choice in this,” Stansbury said. “I absolutely think that he would offend again, whether it be going to find my sister or another innocent child.”
A statement from the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office was released saying:
“Our office stands firmly with the victims who must attend parole hearings to keep dangerous felons in prison. It is appalling that the state continues to put victims and their families through further trauma, forcing them to fight for the sentences that have already been handed down by a court of law. This practice compels victims to relive their devastating experiences. We have a team of dedicated attorneys and victim specialists fighting against the early release of dangerous felons. Our office is committed to protecting victims and seeing that this practice of early parole, is put to an end.”
The victim’s family said they don’t believe Mix can be rehabilitated. They’ve written a letter opposing his release and are asking for the public’s support. A letter urging the board to block Mix’s parole can be sent by mail or by email to BPH.CorrespondenceUnit@cdcr.ca.gov.
Anyone sending an email must include Mix’s inmate number (V35988) and his full name, “Charles William Mix.” All information, including the letter the public can use/fill in, can be found here.
Mix’s parole board hearing is scheduled for Sept. 25.