# California Sheriff Fights Plan to Place Convicted Rapist in a Rental Home Near a Girl Scout Camp

Santa Cruz County Sheriff Chris Clark says the mountain location is hard to reach, has poor cell service and loses power in winter. A judge will hear arguments on Michael Thomas Cheek's proposed housing Oct. 30.

- Section: [Border & Security](https://rightnewsrightnow.com/border-security/)
- Published: 2026-10-23
- By: RightNewsRightNow Staff
- Canonical page: https://rightnewsrightnow.com/articles/santa-cruz-sheriff-clark-fights-plan-house-sexually-violent-predator-cheek-near-girl-scout-camp/

A county sheriff in California is pushing back on a state plan to move a convicted sex offender into a rental house in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Fox News Digital spoke with Santa Cruz County Sheriff Chris Clark.

The plan. State officials are weighing whether to transfer Michael Thomas Cheek, 74, from a locked psychiatric facility to a rental home valued at more than $800,000, paid for by taxpayers. Fox says the property is within a few miles of a Girl Scout camp and schools.

The record. In 1980, Cheek was convicted of raping a young woman at gunpoint. He then escaped from the Contra Costa County jail and raped a 15-year-old girl at gunpoint, Fox reports. He was classified as a sexually violent predator. He finished a sex offender treatment program at a psychiatric facility in 2019. Two earlier attempts to place him in Santa Cruz County failed.

The sheriff's concerns. Clark calls the proximity to the camp and schools "obviously concerning." He says the terrain makes it hard for deputies to get there quickly, and that mountain communities often lose power in winter and have very poor cell coverage. That raises the question, he says, of how well electronic monitoring would work with no electricity, and whether neighbors could call for help.

Clark also objects on fairness grounds. He says Cheek has no ties to the county beyond having victimized people there, and that it is unfair to burden a county with housing him in "one of the most expensive places frankly in the country to live."

What happens next. A Superior Court judge will hear arguments on the proposed housing on Oct. 30. Fox reached out to Cheek's attorney for comment and the story does not include a response.

## Source

Original reporting: [Fox News](https://www.foxnews.com/us/california-sheriff-fights-plan-house-convicted-sex-predator-near-girl-scout-camp)