Other LanguagesAttorney General’s Office had been fighting since 2014 to prevent release
COUPEVILLE — The Attorney General’s Office today announced that an Island County jury denied the release of a sexually violent predator from the state’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island.
Curtis Brogi, 48, had requested conditional release into the community under a “less restrictive alternative.” Conditional release would have allowed Brogi to live in a community setting, while remaining under the jurisdiction of the Island County Superior Court as a sexually violent predator.
Brogi’s criminal history includes a conviction for second degree sexually motivated assault in 1997.
The trial began on June 7 and ended late yesterday with the jury’s verdict that Brogi should not be released and must remain in total confinement. Assistant Attorney General Joshua Studor prosecuted the case for the state.
In the interest of public safety, prosecutors from Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s Sexually Violent Predator Unit have been fighting since July 2014 to prevent Brogi’s conditional release from confinement.
“My office is dedicated to protecting our communities from sexually violent predators,” Ferguson said. “When the evidence shows an offender is still a danger, my team will work to ensure that person remains confined and receiving the treatment they need.”
Under Washington’s civil commitment law, prosecutors had to demonstrate that Brogi’s release plan was either not in his best interest or did not include conditions adequate to protect the public. The jury found that the state had met its burden beyond a reasonable doubt.
Brogi, 48, was found by an Island County jury to be a Sexually Violent Predator in January of 2000 and was civilly committed to the SCC.In 1990, Washington became the first state in the nation to pass a law permitting the involuntary civil commitment of sex offenders after they have served their criminal sentence. The Attorney General’s SVP Unit was established shortly thereafter.
The AGO SVP unit is responsible for prosecuting sex predator cases for 38 of Washington’s 39 counties (King County being the exception). In Fiscal Year 2015, the unit tried 15 cases and won 10 civil commitments. Two trials ended in hung juries (meaning the offender remains detained pending a new trial), and three trials involved an offender who was found by the jury to not meet the criteria to be committed as a sexually violent predator.
As of today, 286 sexually violent predators are in the state’s Special Commitment Program.
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The Office of the Attorney General is the chief legal office for the state of Washington with attorneys and staff in 27 divisions across the state providing legal services to roughly 200 state agencies, boards and commissions. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.
Contact:
Peter Lavallee, Communications Director, (360) 586-0725; PeterL@atg.wa.gov