Letters from a ‘mentally disordered offender’
A San Diego woman has received unwanted letters and a phone call from a convicted felon she’s never met. The man is a mental health patient at Patton State Hospital, where he has been kept on a series of one-year commitments following a 1997 sentence for felony robbery.
Suzanne — who would speak only on condition that her last name not be used by The Times — believes that the hospital, part of a state agency, is more concerned with safeguarding the privacy rights of a convicted felon than in protecting, or even warning, a member of the public. She has provided copies of the letters to the public hospital. The Times has redacted last names and some other personal information.
Read the complete story: “Criminal’s letters leave San Diego woman in fear.”— Tony Perry
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A second letter was postmarked Oct. 12 and sent in a Patton State Hospital envelope. After the letter arrived with the opening line: “Hello sweetheart,” its recipient, who has never met the writer, also received a collect phone call from the hospital. Concerned that she could be at risk, Suzanne has provided copies of the letters to the public hospital.
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The first of two letters from a man being held on a mental health commitment at Patton State Hospital is dated Sept. 15. The writer of the letter, Brent Knauer, is unknown to its recipient, identified by The Times by only her first name, Suzanne. She opened the letter to find the salutation “Dearest Suzanne.” Concerned that she could be at risk, Suzanne has provided copies of the letters to ...
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