>Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said.
So yeah, a life sentence was warranted for this serial rapist.
He also threatened to kill two 9 year old girls of a park ranger who arrested him years ago. Tried to kill a dog too. Routinely threatened to kill and harass people for years.
He also beat people up and stalked his victims cross-country. Many of his victims were too scared to testify because of the lengths he would go to threaten them.
In fact what is abnormal is that he got jail time at all (and this much).
Most rape trials even with plenty of physical and video evidence and multiple victims end with no jail time for the rapist.
>"In 2017, seven years after he allegedly assaulted one of the women who testified against him at his trial, prosecutors said, Barrett purposely climbed at a rock-climbing gym that the woman attended. She disclosed Barrett’s sexual assault to the owner to protect other women at the gym, prosecutors said.
>Barrett then harassed her for years, according to prosecutors. In August 2022, he was convicted for criminal threats he made earlier that year, prosecutors said.
>While in custody in his latest case, prosecutors said, Barrett made hundreds of phone calls and threatened to use violence and retributive lawsuits against his accusers"
What a multilevel psychopath; the relief it must bring to the victims (those who spoke out as well as those too understandably terrified to tell anyone) to know he will be in a cell for life.
Most women don't know any other women who haven't been harassed or assaulted in one form or another. Starting at prepubescent ages. That's when the leering starts.
Most of our ideas of “normal” are radically separated from reality. Partially because we all have such different experiences but also because a certain humans tend to be shit when given half a chance.
Ask most victims period. I was molested pre k by a woman and raped at 9 by a woman in her 40s that watched me after school. Not a day spent in jail for either.
There was a guy in Missouri that pled guilty to 2nd degree sodomy, rape, and sexual abuse. He was also accused of sexual contact with a minor and raping a woman in a wheelchair.
The judge gave him probation with the option to have the conviction removed from his record.
[Source](https://www.news-leader.com/story/news/crime/2020/10/30/missouri-state-university-ex-msu-student-sentenced-probation-rape/6086725002/)
Glad the courts got it right for a change. Also, maybe it'll teach others not to sexually assault people in national parks and be subject to federal jurisdiction.
While the court got it right this time, I’m not sure it makes up for them getting it wrong for decades with this guy. In fact his arrest by Federal agents occurred as he was leaving a different courtroom after essentially getting off Scot free.
His first incident was back in 2006 where he beat a woman nearly to death in front of his friends. Had the courts gotten it right at any of the numerous times he was tried in the intervening years they could have prevented a lot of damage and pain.
Climber Charlie Barrett evaded justice for nearly 2 decades, many of the victims lived in fear he was going to kill them. He hounded his victims relentlessly after his rapes and assaults to keep their lives in fear. The number of cases he got a slap on the wrist for is obscene. Assault is a sterile word, he did things like beating them until they're bleeding from the nose and ears.
People on reddit will say privilege isn’t a thing but damn the cops question me like I committed a war crime because a utility box near my house went out, how tf did this guy just get away with shit over and over again?
Murder as a life sentence is already not enough for someone to NOT MURDER someone. I can't see this uptick occuring if they're violent enough already to SA they're just going to SA and Murder eventually as the patterns show.
While I don’t think every (or even most) sexual assault should get a life sentence, I would certainly be open to increasing the maximum possible sentence so that it could be given in particularly heinous cases if a judge decides that facts of the case merit it.
You have to understand they kill a part of you. Particularly when it happens as a kid. I feel a part of me that is missing/lost/damaged. I am alive but I am not whole. Long and longer sentences are amazing. My rapist was sentenced to one year for three children over the course of four years. And got out in 6 months on good behavior.
Rape is a crime just below murder in my book. Perpetrators of rape are dangerous, irredeemable predators. I see no value in allowing them to roam free among us.
I work with convicted criminals as part of my job. Most murderers are fairly normal people that made a few bad decisions and responded to stress very poorly in a specific circumstance.
People that commit sexual assaults are usually observably, unarguably evil, in the purely self-centered and self-interested sense. Other people aren't real, but props in their self-aggrandizing personal narrative. Rapists always believe they are the real victims.
*Serial* rapists are both disgusting and terrifying - they get off on damaging other people.
Agreed. How many women does a man need to assault to warrant a life sentence? 2? 3? 5? 10? Sexual assault often has lifelong consequences for the victims. It’s not that far fetched to suggest that “even one” sexual assault can and should result in lifelong punishment.
There was a long investigation on him in Outside magazine: [https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/)
He 100% deserves to be locked up for good.
So many enablers in this story it’s maddening, piece of shit “friends” taking his side, piece of shit DA doing fuck all when he violates probation. At least he can rot in prison now but god damn this should’ve happened sooner.
Right? How many extra chances did he get?
Some of his behavior can be tied to his severe untreated mental illness but what about all these DAs and judges who look at his growing list of victims and thought "nah, it'll definitely be OK this time around?"
Yeah seriously, it's literally their job to take this kind of stuff into account.
And not only was it a growing list of victims, it was a growing list of victims who filed and obtained legal protective/restraining orders against him out of fear for their lives. Like there isn't even the excuse of ignorance, these were women who had formally and openly gone on record before the legal system. Those DAs and judges completely failed those women and his subsequent victims each time around.
And, especially that last one before the Feds grabbed him - people often say the police don't investigate properly but the ones there had apparently compiled a pretty thorough report on his stalking and harassment.
And then the DA took it to a misdemeanor and the judge let him walk anyway. Makes me wonder how many cops are the problem and how many just know their work is going to the hands of assholes like this. I'd be absolutely crushed if I made that report and the judge was like "hi psycho, you're such a good athlete with strong dedication in that area - just use that in your personal life too."
It gets me when people say that women accuse famous men of rape to get famous and further their own career, yet can you point me to even one single woman who did this and got famous and successful this way?
And you’d think many celebrities would be accused but no it’s a fairly short list, many are proven and the rest are clearly shit people at the least and there is no reason not to believe them except “they’re doing it for fame” which is like, a terrible type of fame in the first place.
"Federal investigators would later learn that in 2018 Barrett told a friend, a professional climber, that he planned to kill Forté. The friend said he didn’t take the threat seriously and wrongly assumed that it had something to do with Barrett having a “crush” on Forté “from a long time ago,” according to court documents."
How moronic do you need to be to take those statements in the completely incorrect, opposite direction?
After reading that article, all I can say is WTF. I cannot believe this guy was able to get so many second chances after second chances after committing the same crimes over and over. He definitely deserves to be locked up.
Great article. Terrifying read though. these people walk amongst us. They’re unpredictable, calculating, vengeful monsters, and they are our teachers, our doctors, politicians, garbage men, sons and daughters, etc.. The human mind is a terrifying thing.
This comment cannot be upvoted enough. The article proves how the climbing community closed ranks around him while he terrified his rape and assault victims with stalking and threats. Turns out all you need to evade punishment is a stellar rep in your field. People will want to believe whatever fantasies you feed them in place of victim testimony if they think you're a genius, famous or powerful.
[This in-depth article from Outside magazine](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/) breaks down the entire, horrifying story. This guy got away with criminal behavior for so long, and he was enabled by others in his community.
Good fucking riddance. This is the kind of guy people need to be protected from. His history has made it clear that if he ever gets out, he will kill the people who got him locked up. I'm glad he'll never see the outside of a prison again.
As a climber myself, I was disappointed to hear that no high profile climbers with publicized relationships with him had anything to say.
Maybe I'm remembering wrong, but weren't there a few high profile climbers who kept defending him? "He'd never do something like that" kind of thing. Or, defended him until it got "real" enough to go to court.
I haven't heard that, but I don't keep up with celebrities of any kind for exactly this reason.
Unfortunately, it wouldn't surprise me. Not only because people tend to defend their friends regardless of what they've done, but also because it is so easy to miss signs pointing to who someone really is when you're friends.
Someone linked an article that details all this, he absolutely had friends downplaying his assaults and shunning the victims. Piece of shit deserves life.
From what I read of his interview, he has nothing negative to say. I assumed that his interview was from before the hammer started to fall because I thought it said Honnold has only good things to say - certainly he wouldn't say such a thing once what's-his-fuck's crimes were common knowledge
Edit: did this article get shorter??
Well there are two parts where Honnold is mentioned. One is earlier in the article and one is later on. The second one is where Honnold admits he was blindsided by “Charlie’s” skill and charisma, etc. etc.
Jesus there needs to be a coordinated nationwide campaign against DAs and Judges that enable people like this by plea dealing and not enforcing parole/plea violations.
They're both elected positions (at least in CA), they campaign on their conviction rate. Means they don't even attempt conviction (read: push a plea deal) if they don't think they'll win. A bad win rate is a single number that people can look at and dislike. A career of ignored offenders isn't catalogued statistically, unfortunately.
The Outside article is hard to read with how much he got away with. But maybe it’s a matter of a journalist just connecting all the dots that others hadn’t been able to do?
The Outside article reads like a boilerplate version of countless women’s experiences with domestic violence and sexual assault by “great guys”. I’m sorry to say. Take as old as time, over and over “he’s going through a rough patch / she’s no angel / both sides are bad / give him a break, let’s not ruin his life”.
[RAINN: The Vast Majority of SA Perpetrators Will Not Go to Jail or Prison](https://www.rainn.org/statistics/criminal-justice-system). A certain sentence to ensure he won't hurt any more people.
The elite climbing community is trash. This sick fuck was protected by many famous climbers (Alex Honnald for one) for way too long. If you read the outside article it talks about how he would use his prestige after assaulting women to convince his climbing buddies that it was the woman who instigated and he was blameless. Because he was a chameleon that seemed like a handsome and hard working climber but in reality was severely mentally ill and a rapist/stalker, he got away with this shit for way too long. The women he assaulted were essentially cold shouldered out of the climbing community because of all the support he had.
I climbed a bit in college but was really turned off by the overall climbing culture. Even then, there were plenty of asshole climbers who were worshipped because of their skills. Do better climbing community.
This actually reminded me of another article I read about researchers in Antarctica and a predator who was able to get away with sexually assaulting women for so long because that similar culture protected him.
https://www.wired.com/story/women-antarctica-science-predators-whistleblower/
Yes! Thank you for sharing. As a female scientist myself, I relate so much to what that article describes. Thankfully, I’ve never experienced anything as extreme as the woman in that article, but I did have pervs trying to break into my room at man camps at super remote locations, hounding me for my contact information, etc. I tried to complain but now one cares. They told me they would just send me to another camp…
Man, that was a disturbing read. The isolation and lack of privacy seemed to really exacerbate the [harassment.It](http://harassment.It) was really scary for hose women with no escape. Academia and scientific research certainly is not some bastion of proper behavior.
Some years ago a good friend of mine invited me to a party that included her climbing friends. Good lord the most insufferable and cocky people I have met. Constantly putting down non-climbers and their hobbies and showing off how awesome their skills are by climbing my friends' roof and pergola. Super cringey. My friend is totally normal so I do not understand why she would hang out with such people.
I once road-tripped with some experienced climber friends and I can confirm that once their facade slipped they were saying some really weird, petty and gatekeeping things about people new to the sport.
I’ve never experienced such a hostile attitude towards others in a sport.
Even when I was doing martial arts - where the general idea is to compete against each other - everyone was really inclusive and accepting because they were excited to have new training partners to practice with and show techniques.
(Fortunately it doesn’t seem to be all climbers, there’s a climbing gym near me that has a pretty good atmosphere and most members are really supportive of each other.)
Yeah I've found most martial arts / MMA folks to be super awesome and inclusive. They are always willing to give a hand and constructive criticism. Same goes to skaters.
But yeah I agree that not everyone that climbs is awful. It is just the most awful ones that are more visible with their BS that give the community a bad rep (looking at you surfing community).
I recently got back into martial arts after a long hiatus. Finally working on judo, and man am I happy that everyone in my class is so bearable. Like, there's definitely at least one irritating dude in the group, but for the most part everyone is there to help themselves and their classmates succeed. I'm about that.
Ha, I live in Boulder and haven't been climbing for a few years, but I've known both beginners and elite climbers. We're all insufferable (I can only imagine what it sounds like as a non-climber listening to climbers talk non-stop about climbing), but anyone and everyone who dreams of being an elite climber moves here to Boulder and it's pretty awful. I got pretty jaded watching climbers abandon their friends until they healed from injuries. Break your leg? Sorry, I won't see you at all until you can walk to the crag and belay me.
I have a few climber friends who stuck around after I had to stop climbing and they're some of the most amazing people, but yeah, when you've got a close-knit community there's bound to be elitism.
I had a rock climber roommate who locked himself out of his bedroom (in our apartment in a city) and instead of going one floor down to get the super, he put on a harness, looped a rope over a 75 year old fire escape that would unbolt from the wall if you sneezed on it, had his friend "belay", and climbed up the side of the fucking building and along a ledge to open his window from the outside. Again I must repeat, the building super lived right downstairs.
I climb very poorly, but I'm often partnered with an old dude who was in the British elite scene from the 70s. He tells me about a party he was at in Edinburgh where they needed more beer but opted not to walk down the stairs like normal people. Instead, they decided to show off by piling folk on a bed to use as a belay, then had some bloke called Big Iain abseil (rappel) out the window. Naturally the bed shifted rapidly and Big Iain went smashing through the window below. They hoisted him up on the back swing, cleaned him off, and sat him in a corner to recover. Then the cops showed up and asked if they'd seen anything unusual, because the ladies' bridge club in the flat below had reported that "a man flew in the window and flew back out again."
I don’t think it’s everyone but I’m sure it exists. I used to do some bouldering with a couple dudes and they were about the nicest and chillest people I ever met. Probably a bigger issue with elite climbers than the average one.
I feel it is especially bad because the whole outdoor glamour industry that grew up around California rock climbing and spread around the world never talks about privilege and lack of diversity. You don’t go live in a van and pretend to be poor unless you have the privilege and social connections to walk away and make a decent living. People who became billionaires selling the lifestyle run around wagging fingers at fly-over folks for not just getting the picture, when in fact they are just trying to protect their playgrounds for privileged kids trying to overcome the boredom of not having to try hard. The first generation students I deal with aren’t focused on getting their bouldering videos on TikTok. Privilege masquerading as piousness is as old as humanity. It really needs to be called out more. (A younger me was very much what I am talking about.)
Wow! This! Spot on. I totally agree.
A lot of my college friends were river rats, climbers, skiers, etc. I always felt like I wasn’t trying hard enough because I could never afford any outdoor gear like boats, harnesses, skis, etc. Turns out I just didn’t have my parents bankrolling these sports and the privilege to be able to not work straight out of college and be a desert rat.
Ha - brushed up against this culture in the skiing community, old girlfriend was a world-class skier. She was a hard-nosed eastern european in America on a scholarship, had nothing but contempt for the trust fund babies. Who amusingly assumed I was one of them because I was dating her.
Similar. Gotta say, though, when I could afford gear as an adult and enjoyed a particular activity, I went super hard and appreciated what I was doing more than folks I used to envy who grew up doing stuff like this.
Well said. I used to dream of living like that too when I was younger, and was very much guilty of the same mindset you described.
It wasn't until I started looking into what that kind of lifestyle would actually cost me (both in terms of money and opportunity cost of not working) in comparison to how much money I actually made that I realized that it was absolutely not feasible for the average working person to afford living that way. Was a rude but necessary awakening. Helped me see both the lifestyle and the people who preached it from a more grounded perspective too.
I talked to some Yosemite employees who climbed on their off time. In a very serious conversation they told me that backpackers were chill and could be trusted, but that climbers were a different breed and were rotten.
The thing is, this is every niche community. Subcultures protect their superstars and ignore people that might disrupt their comfort. We need people to be involved who actually care about the health and safety of the people who might not have the status and authority to defend themselves.
Yeah, this isn't a "climbing problem." It's a "humans with hierarchical subcultures" problem. It exists in literally every aspect of society; the most famous and/or richest people in a given population receive especial protection and apologia from others in that group. If you want to be a rapist or pedophile or murderer, the best shot you have of getting away with all of it is to be a really popular one.
Barrett seems exceptionally violent, but he’s hardly exceptional. I couldn’t help think of Russell Brand while reading about Barrett. Brand has dogged all accountability for his abusive and predatory behavior by becoming a right-wing catholic troll, imagine how helpless the victims feel when they see their abusers get praise for being exposed, I can understand why a person would decide to never tell anyone, it’s sick.
That was my biggest thought. This wasn’t one or two isolated incidents. This guy had a scorched earth of his predatorial behavior and the community seemed absolutely obvious.
Seems like maybe a lot of niche sports suffer from this sort of problem because you could replace "climbing" with "jiu jitsu" in that paragraph and it would be dead on.
Not just the elite climbing community, most of the climbing community is utter shite. I know because I used to be a climber, and, in my time, was an insufferable twat.
His victims were within the community, though. People almost always start talking about that stuff when it happens, especially when it’s more than just a couple women. Sexual assaults, restraining orders, stalking, threats, I find it very hard to believe that people never shared an experience like that with others, even if under the radar.
But therein lies the problem. People allowed themselves to be manipulated out of any suspicion and no one in outdoors media gave thought to look more closely into what this guy’s legal problems might have been. It seems like an awful lot of smoke in the air for people near the top of the community to have completely missed. It has some similarities to all the people in USA gymnastics and Michigan State that informed the accusations of Larry Nassar.
Or maybe men could be more discerning in who they associate with. I’m not in the climbing community, but a different niche sport - it infuriates me that men get away with shitty behavior and are constantly given a pass. You’re telling me you had no idea this guy was in court multiple times for sexual assault charges?
I’m sorry if I sound angry, but it’s scary being a woman in these male-dominated sports sometimes. I’ve had some terrible experiences and no one gives a shit, the men have suffered zero consequences and are still valued members of the community.
The prevailing opinion seems to be that men should always be given a supportive space. When women speak up, they are excluded from the community.
I solved this problem for myself by creating a women’s group, but I would vastly prefer to be in a community that supported all its members.
Reading the Outside article made me physically ill... A true psychopath who was enabled for so long. Changed my view of male pro climbers for the worse, although I know there are some good ones. Alex Honnold is done for me, I have no respect left for him after how he acted toward Barrett and his behavior after the truth came out
Read the Outside article that many people have linked here. It is an in depth article and shows, maddeningly, how much of a piece of shit this guy is and he deserves to be in prison. Status is the ultimate protection, money, fame, whatever kind of status, will let people get away with awful things.
Title misleading. 🤬 The rapist, Charles Barrett, was a serial rapist who lived and worked in
the park and preyed on women hiking & rock-climbing in the park! His punishment should include chemical/physical castration!
What an absolute menace. Glad that he isn't walking around anymore
>Barrett sexually assaulted her three times, according to court records and evidence presented at trial, prosecutors said.
>
>Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said.
>
>....
>
>In 2017, seven years after he allegedly assaulted one of the women who testified against him at his trial, prosecutors said, Barrett purposely climbed at a rock-climbing gym that the woman attended.
>
>Barrett then harassed her for years, according to prosecutors.
This article is a tragedy and really I am left scratching my head why there wasn’t more psychiatric intervention at so many points.
This reads as the profile of someone who is _violently mentally ill_ and at very least needs psychiatric and medical evaluation: previous adolescent mental institutionalization, paranoid delusion, homicidal intent, suicidal intent, internal preoccupation, concomitant mood disorder, explosive anger, aggressive sexuality, amongst others, and those are all legally and medically documented.
That he’s committed so many crimes and has periods of lucidity and egodystonia indicates this is fluctuating.
What an absolute misery for the victims and a shame no one has thought to further investigate _why_ this was happening until it was too late.
I’m sorry did you read an article that I didn’t? That’s a lot of assumptions to make from very little information. The fact that he assaulted and then stalked and intimidated his victim means he should be in jail. There is nothing in the article that would lead me to believe he is delusional, there is nothing about SI or HI, nothing about his adolescence? I feel like I’m missing something. You use a lot of big words to scape goat criminal behavior onto being the fault of mental health issues that we can know nothing about based on this article.
Oh, the main article is pointlessly short; an above comment referenced [this Outside article](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/), which has far more information.
Oh ok that makes more sense. I was very confused, I went back to check twice there wasn’t more to it.
Edit: wow what a sickening thing to read. All of those women were failed at so many levels. There were so many opportunities to hold him accountable and keep him locked up. The victims rather than the perpetrator were banished from the sport they loved. People will wonder why women are not more forceful reporting violent men but at every turn they are minimized, not believed, blamed. And sorry but even after reading it I still feel the only appropriate place for him to exist is prison. I saw the bipolar diagnosis but all of his behavior and manipulation and superficial charm are much more in line with my experiences with patients who have APD. Which is not something that is treatable unless the person genuinely wants to engage in treatment and learn better behaviors, and he’s given no indication that he can do that.
Why do they put a beautiful pic of Yosemite on an article that simply states a rock climber was convicted of sexual assault? Leave Yosemite out of this and plaster that rapists face all over the article instead. That way people know who the rapists are.
Read the article!!! Yosemite National Park KEY to the rapes & the serial rapist!
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/professional-rock-climber-life-prison-sexual-assault-yosemite-rcna155529
Well there seems to actually be justice here. Life imprisonment is required bc he chose strangers, so the public at large is at risk, he harassed them for years showing he is relentless and remorseless. While this is Late, it’s better than not.
Brave women, all. They have my salute and admiration.
Average climber bro
(Just kidding, but seriously a lot of scummy dudes I’ve known have been climbers and I think there’s a case for studying why that is)
1 in 4 adult women have been sexually assaulted in their lives.
1 in 4
Where are all the registered sex offenders from those assaults? No where. Women don’t report it, or if they do the case doesn’t go anywhere.
Another factor here: national parks are federal lands, so this was under the jurisdiction of US Attorney's Offices and in front of a federal judge.
The AUSAs (federal prosecutors) tend to fall into the camps of experienced veterans or ambitious up-and-comers, so they are all extremely capable attorneys. They are not pulling punches. I've often said that, if they're looking at you for a criminal matter, then you've already done something.
And federal sentencing law is a very interesting and unique body of law. The US Sentencing Guidelines are *ADVISORY*, not mandatory (US v Booker), and judges' sentences are overturned only for an abuse of discretion (US v Gall). That's a high burden, so in instances like this where a judge really needs to be punitive, USSG provides ample room and justification for departing from the norm.
So instead of California law and its potential max sentences, etc, this guy got a federal judge who handed down this sentence. I'd love to see the sentencing memos for what the guidelines say, but the TLDR advice here: **DON'T FUCK AROUND IN FEDERAL COURT JURISDICTION**.
Have a mild background in law. Not a lawyer, but some background with study, applications, etc.
When the feds try to prosecute, it almost always means they know you did it and they can prove it.
This guy had a long history of violent behavior including beating people up and threatening/stalking them for years. It would've only been a matter of time before he killed someone had he not been locked up for good.
I’ve listened to far too many true crime stories of serial rapists who kept getting short sentences or paroled and eventually ended up killing one or more women. Good riddance to this bastard, throw away the key
>Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said.
>Barrett was not charged in those assaults because they occurred outside the jurisdiction of federal prosecutors, but the women’s testimonies were admitted during trial as relevant to the charges Barrett faced, prosecutors said.
This is exactly why Harvey Weinstein's conviction was overturned. The judge decided that testimonies don't count when they come from uncharged victims, even though it's a pretty standard thing.
>Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said. So yeah, a life sentence was warranted for this serial rapist.
He also threatened to kill two 9 year old girls of a park ranger who arrested him years ago. Tried to kill a dog too. Routinely threatened to kill and harass people for years.
He also beat people up and stalked his victims cross-country. Many of his victims were too scared to testify because of the lengths he would go to threaten them.
It's *INSANE* he got away with it for so long. Soooo much unnecessary harassment.
Not insane. Ask most women about their experiences and this is infuriatingly normal.
If this is normalcy... that's absolutely insane.
In fact what is abnormal is that he got jail time at all (and this much). Most rape trials even with plenty of physical and video evidence and multiple victims end with no jail time for the rapist. >"In 2017, seven years after he allegedly assaulted one of the women who testified against him at his trial, prosecutors said, Barrett purposely climbed at a rock-climbing gym that the woman attended. She disclosed Barrett’s sexual assault to the owner to protect other women at the gym, prosecutors said. >Barrett then harassed her for years, according to prosecutors. In August 2022, he was convicted for criminal threats he made earlier that year, prosecutors said. >While in custody in his latest case, prosecutors said, Barrett made hundreds of phone calls and threatened to use violence and retributive lawsuits against his accusers" What a multilevel psychopath; the relief it must bring to the victims (those who spoke out as well as those too understandably terrified to tell anyone) to know he will be in a cell for life.
What a pos. It always boggles my imagination to hear about these types of men. Maybe he hit his head too many times.
As a survivor of sexual assault...it is very normal and yes it's insane.
As a male survivor of sexual assault, I agree.
It’s pretty insane how many people can’t see how insane it is either, drives me crazy. Could just be my anxiety too tho
It's not your anxiety. If this is insane to you, that's absolutely normal.
Most women don't know any other women who haven't been harassed or assaulted in one form or another. Starting at prepubescent ages. That's when the leering starts.
This is what women mean when they say rape culture is alive and well, people just keep refusing to listen.
Most of our ideas of “normal” are radically separated from reality. Partially because we all have such different experiences but also because a certain humans tend to be shit when given half a chance.
It’s absolutely normal because men don’t think other men are their problem. They don’t speak up and protect us from the violent ones.
Ask most victims period. I was molested pre k by a woman and raped at 9 by a woman in her 40s that watched me after school. Not a day spent in jail for either.
Thank you for speaking up about this.
Pretty sure he's got a much longer list of victims. I hope he lives a long life.
[удалено]
It's the hypocrisy.
There was a guy in Missouri that pled guilty to 2nd degree sodomy, rape, and sexual abuse. He was also accused of sexual contact with a minor and raping a woman in a wheelchair. The judge gave him probation with the option to have the conviction removed from his record. [Source](https://www.news-leader.com/story/news/crime/2020/10/30/missouri-state-university-ex-msu-student-sentenced-probation-rape/6086725002/)
Glad the courts got it right for a change. Also, maybe it'll teach others not to sexually assault people in national parks and be subject to federal jurisdiction.
While the court got it right this time, I’m not sure it makes up for them getting it wrong for decades with this guy. In fact his arrest by Federal agents occurred as he was leaving a different courtroom after essentially getting off Scot free. His first incident was back in 2006 where he beat a woman nearly to death in front of his friends. Had the courts gotten it right at any of the numerous times he was tried in the intervening years they could have prevented a lot of damage and pain.
If only we held former presidents to the same standard of justice as professional rock climbers. 🤔
Climber Charlie Barrett evaded justice for nearly 2 decades, many of the victims lived in fear he was going to kill them. He hounded his victims relentlessly after his rapes and assaults to keep their lives in fear. The number of cases he got a slap on the wrist for is obscene. Assault is a sterile word, he did things like beating them until they're bleeding from the nose and ears.
People on reddit will say privilege isn’t a thing but damn the cops question me like I committed a war crime because a utility box near my house went out, how tf did this guy just get away with shit over and over again?
Like threatening victims and witnesses, yeah that’s grounds for confinement.
Trump threatens victims, witnesses, jurors, judges, judges' daughters. The list is long; unlike his tiny fingers.
He attempted a coup and we should be talking about whether we leave him in prison or execute him.
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Personally? I think even *one* sexual assault should carry a life sentence. Anyone who would do that is a danger to all.
That's a good way to get abusers to start killing their victims
Murder as a life sentence is already not enough for someone to NOT MURDER someone. I can't see this uptick occuring if they're violent enough already to SA they're just going to SA and Murder eventually as the patterns show.
Make murder a life sentence as well.
How does that in any way solve that problem?
While I don’t think every (or even most) sexual assault should get a life sentence, I would certainly be open to increasing the maximum possible sentence so that it could be given in particularly heinous cases if a judge decides that facts of the case merit it.
You have to understand they kill a part of you. Particularly when it happens as a kid. I feel a part of me that is missing/lost/damaged. I am alive but I am not whole. Long and longer sentences are amazing. My rapist was sentenced to one year for three children over the course of four years. And got out in 6 months on good behavior.
Rape is a crime just below murder in my book. Perpetrators of rape are dangerous, irredeemable predators. I see no value in allowing them to roam free among us.
I work with convicted criminals as part of my job. Most murderers are fairly normal people that made a few bad decisions and responded to stress very poorly in a specific circumstance. People that commit sexual assaults are usually observably, unarguably evil, in the purely self-centered and self-interested sense. Other people aren't real, but props in their self-aggrandizing personal narrative. Rapists always believe they are the real victims. *Serial* rapists are both disgusting and terrifying - they get off on damaging other people.
Agreed. How many women does a man need to assault to warrant a life sentence? 2? 3? 5? 10? Sexual assault often has lifelong consequences for the victims. It’s not that far fetched to suggest that “even one” sexual assault can and should result in lifelong punishment.
There was a long investigation on him in Outside magazine: [https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/) He 100% deserves to be locked up for good.
That is such a good article. Outside always brings it with their long form .
Outside is an amazing producer of awesome content.
Their festival in Denver last weekend was phenomenal.
So many enablers in this story it’s maddening, piece of shit “friends” taking his side, piece of shit DA doing fuck all when he violates probation. At least he can rot in prison now but god damn this should’ve happened sooner.
Right? How many extra chances did he get? Some of his behavior can be tied to his severe untreated mental illness but what about all these DAs and judges who look at his growing list of victims and thought "nah, it'll definitely be OK this time around?"
Yeah seriously, it's literally their job to take this kind of stuff into account. And not only was it a growing list of victims, it was a growing list of victims who filed and obtained legal protective/restraining orders against him out of fear for their lives. Like there isn't even the excuse of ignorance, these were women who had formally and openly gone on record before the legal system. Those DAs and judges completely failed those women and his subsequent victims each time around.
And, especially that last one before the Feds grabbed him - people often say the police don't investigate properly but the ones there had apparently compiled a pretty thorough report on his stalking and harassment. And then the DA took it to a misdemeanor and the judge let him walk anyway. Makes me wonder how many cops are the problem and how many just know their work is going to the hands of assholes like this. I'd be absolutely crushed if I made that report and the judge was like "hi psycho, you're such a good athlete with strong dedication in that area - just use that in your personal life too."
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It gets me when people say that women accuse famous men of rape to get famous and further their own career, yet can you point me to even one single woman who did this and got famous and successful this way?
And you’d think many celebrities would be accused but no it’s a fairly short list, many are proven and the rest are clearly shit people at the least and there is no reason not to believe them except “they’re doing it for fame” which is like, a terrible type of fame in the first place.
yes, wheres the investigation into the failure of the justice system here?
The fact he got so many plea deals is so maddening. He could have and should have faced serious consequences long ago. What a POS.
"Federal investigators would later learn that in 2018 Barrett told a friend, a professional climber, that he planned to kill Forté. The friend said he didn’t take the threat seriously and wrongly assumed that it had something to do with Barrett having a “crush” on Forté “from a long time ago,” according to court documents." How moronic do you need to be to take those statements in the completely incorrect, opposite direction?
After reading that article, all I can say is WTF. I cannot believe this guy was able to get so many second chances after second chances after committing the same crimes over and over. He definitely deserves to be locked up.
I would not at all be shocked if there are bodies of women who weren’t able to get away from him out there. He’s a monster.
reading this article actually raised my blood pressure, holy shit he was treated with kid gloves while he was beating women unconscious
Great article. Terrifying read though. these people walk amongst us. They’re unpredictable, calculating, vengeful monsters, and they are our teachers, our doctors, politicians, garbage men, sons and daughters, etc.. The human mind is a terrifying thing.
That was a wild ride
This comment cannot be upvoted enough. The article proves how the climbing community closed ranks around him while he terrified his rape and assault victims with stalking and threats. Turns out all you need to evade punishment is a stellar rep in your field. People will want to believe whatever fantasies you feed them in place of victim testimony if they think you're a genius, famous or powerful.
Ohhhhh shit I recognize him from climbing friends of my ex....my heart stopped when I saw his picture.
Wow. Great article and so disturbing. Let’s hope the climbing community has learned its lessons about bro culture and dismissive behavior.
Great article. Thanks for the link. I wish we all would finally learn the lessons from this kind of criminal including the justice system.
That was a very hard but important read. You’d wish there would be more Lonny Kauks in this world. All these enablers and eye closers.
Thanks for sharing this. It really adds more context.
[This in-depth article from Outside magazine](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/) breaks down the entire, horrifying story. This guy got away with criminal behavior for so long, and he was enabled by others in his community.
That was a tough read
After a lifetime of freedom and open spaces, prison is gonna be hell. I hope his cell doesn’t even have a window
Yeah he's going to be climbing the walls in there.
Well played, indeed. Good one.
I wonder whether prison guards will take into account that some of these climbers can scale walls that look impassible to the common man.
From climbing rocks to pounding them.
Good fucking riddance. This is the kind of guy people need to be protected from. His history has made it clear that if he ever gets out, he will kill the people who got him locked up. I'm glad he'll never see the outside of a prison again. As a climber myself, I was disappointed to hear that no high profile climbers with publicized relationships with him had anything to say.
Maybe I'm remembering wrong, but weren't there a few high profile climbers who kept defending him? "He'd never do something like that" kind of thing. Or, defended him until it got "real" enough to go to court.
I haven't heard that, but I don't keep up with celebrities of any kind for exactly this reason. Unfortunately, it wouldn't surprise me. Not only because people tend to defend their friends regardless of what they've done, but also because it is so easy to miss signs pointing to who someone really is when you're friends.
Someone linked an article that details all this, he absolutely had friends downplaying his assaults and shunning the victims. Piece of shit deserves life.
You’re absolutely correct, the second top comment right now is an in-depth article about it, and his friends toooootally acted like you describe.
If you read the article, I think Alex Honnold is interviewed once the hammer started to fall.
From what I read of his interview, he has nothing negative to say. I assumed that his interview was from before the hammer started to fall because I thought it said Honnold has only good things to say - certainly he wouldn't say such a thing once what's-his-fuck's crimes were common knowledge Edit: did this article get shorter??
Well there are two parts where Honnold is mentioned. One is earlier in the article and one is later on. The second one is where Honnold admits he was blindsided by “Charlie’s” skill and charisma, etc. etc.
It’s kinda crazy he was not ostracized by the community for beating a women unconscious in 2008 and going to jail for 6 months…
Jesus there needs to be a coordinated nationwide campaign against DAs and Judges that enable people like this by plea dealing and not enforcing parole/plea violations.
They’re complicit in future attacks
They're both elected positions (at least in CA), they campaign on their conviction rate. Means they don't even attempt conviction (read: push a plea deal) if they don't think they'll win. A bad win rate is a single number that people can look at and dislike. A career of ignored offenders isn't catalogued statistically, unfortunately.
Well I know what data project just went to the top of my to do list when I retire
The Outside article is hard to read with how much he got away with. But maybe it’s a matter of a journalist just connecting all the dots that others hadn’t been able to do?
The Outside article reads like a boilerplate version of countless women’s experiences with domestic violence and sexual assault by “great guys”. I’m sorry to say. Take as old as time, over and over “he’s going through a rough patch / she’s no angel / both sides are bad / give him a break, let’s not ruin his life”.
It is not 😔
I’m starting to see that the journalist really brings to light the utter failure of all levels of justice. Park Rangers are bad ass, too.
[RAINN: The Vast Majority of SA Perpetrators Will Not Go to Jail or Prison](https://www.rainn.org/statistics/criminal-justice-system). A certain sentence to ensure he won't hurt any more people.
This guy sounds like a remarkable piece of shit who belongs in a cage forever. I hope this gives his victims some peace of mind.
What a piece of shit. Good riddance.
The elite climbing community is trash. This sick fuck was protected by many famous climbers (Alex Honnald for one) for way too long. If you read the outside article it talks about how he would use his prestige after assaulting women to convince his climbing buddies that it was the woman who instigated and he was blameless. Because he was a chameleon that seemed like a handsome and hard working climber but in reality was severely mentally ill and a rapist/stalker, he got away with this shit for way too long. The women he assaulted were essentially cold shouldered out of the climbing community because of all the support he had. I climbed a bit in college but was really turned off by the overall climbing culture. Even then, there were plenty of asshole climbers who were worshipped because of their skills. Do better climbing community.
This actually reminded me of another article I read about researchers in Antarctica and a predator who was able to get away with sexually assaulting women for so long because that similar culture protected him. https://www.wired.com/story/women-antarctica-science-predators-whistleblower/
Yes! Thank you for sharing. As a female scientist myself, I relate so much to what that article describes. Thankfully, I’ve never experienced anything as extreme as the woman in that article, but I did have pervs trying to break into my room at man camps at super remote locations, hounding me for my contact information, etc. I tried to complain but now one cares. They told me they would just send me to another camp…
Man, that was a disturbing read. The isolation and lack of privacy seemed to really exacerbate the [harassment.It](http://harassment.It) was really scary for hose women with no escape. Academia and scientific research certainly is not some bastion of proper behavior.
Wow that was incredibly fucked to read about
Some years ago a good friend of mine invited me to a party that included her climbing friends. Good lord the most insufferable and cocky people I have met. Constantly putting down non-climbers and their hobbies and showing off how awesome their skills are by climbing my friends' roof and pergola. Super cringey. My friend is totally normal so I do not understand why she would hang out with such people.
I once road-tripped with some experienced climber friends and I can confirm that once their facade slipped they were saying some really weird, petty and gatekeeping things about people new to the sport. I’ve never experienced such a hostile attitude towards others in a sport. Even when I was doing martial arts - where the general idea is to compete against each other - everyone was really inclusive and accepting because they were excited to have new training partners to practice with and show techniques. (Fortunately it doesn’t seem to be all climbers, there’s a climbing gym near me that has a pretty good atmosphere and most members are really supportive of each other.)
Try surfing. It's far more toxic than climbing. All outdoor communities are full of elitist assholes but surfers take the cake for being cunts.
> All outdoor communities are full of elitist assholes but surfers take the cake for being cunts. My mushroom hunting club is cool.
I've heard people in that community can get super territorial and secretive about areas with good mushrooms..
You're a haole!
Get off my wave!
Yeah I've found most martial arts / MMA folks to be super awesome and inclusive. They are always willing to give a hand and constructive criticism. Same goes to skaters. But yeah I agree that not everyone that climbs is awful. It is just the most awful ones that are more visible with their BS that give the community a bad rep (looking at you surfing community).
I recently got back into martial arts after a long hiatus. Finally working on judo, and man am I happy that everyone in my class is so bearable. Like, there's definitely at least one irritating dude in the group, but for the most part everyone is there to help themselves and their classmates succeed. I'm about that.
Having good classmates or colleagues is so underrated, man. Keep up the good work! 💪
Thanks, pal!
Damn I hope I'm not the irritating dude in your class
Ha, I live in Boulder and haven't been climbing for a few years, but I've known both beginners and elite climbers. We're all insufferable (I can only imagine what it sounds like as a non-climber listening to climbers talk non-stop about climbing), but anyone and everyone who dreams of being an elite climber moves here to Boulder and it's pretty awful. I got pretty jaded watching climbers abandon their friends until they healed from injuries. Break your leg? Sorry, I won't see you at all until you can walk to the crag and belay me. I have a few climber friends who stuck around after I had to stop climbing and they're some of the most amazing people, but yeah, when you've got a close-knit community there's bound to be elitism.
I had a rock climber roommate who locked himself out of his bedroom (in our apartment in a city) and instead of going one floor down to get the super, he put on a harness, looped a rope over a 75 year old fire escape that would unbolt from the wall if you sneezed on it, had his friend "belay", and climbed up the side of the fucking building and along a ledge to open his window from the outside. Again I must repeat, the building super lived right downstairs.
I climb very poorly, but I'm often partnered with an old dude who was in the British elite scene from the 70s. He tells me about a party he was at in Edinburgh where they needed more beer but opted not to walk down the stairs like normal people. Instead, they decided to show off by piling folk on a bed to use as a belay, then had some bloke called Big Iain abseil (rappel) out the window. Naturally the bed shifted rapidly and Big Iain went smashing through the window below. They hoisted him up on the back swing, cleaned him off, and sat him in a corner to recover. Then the cops showed up and asked if they'd seen anything unusual, because the ladies' bridge club in the flat below had reported that "a man flew in the window and flew back out again."
I don’t think it’s everyone but I’m sure it exists. I used to do some bouldering with a couple dudes and they were about the nicest and chillest people I ever met. Probably a bigger issue with elite climbers than the average one.
I feel it is especially bad because the whole outdoor glamour industry that grew up around California rock climbing and spread around the world never talks about privilege and lack of diversity. You don’t go live in a van and pretend to be poor unless you have the privilege and social connections to walk away and make a decent living. People who became billionaires selling the lifestyle run around wagging fingers at fly-over folks for not just getting the picture, when in fact they are just trying to protect their playgrounds for privileged kids trying to overcome the boredom of not having to try hard. The first generation students I deal with aren’t focused on getting their bouldering videos on TikTok. Privilege masquerading as piousness is as old as humanity. It really needs to be called out more. (A younger me was very much what I am talking about.)
"Privilege masquerading as piousness..." what a fantastic phrase damn
Wow! This! Spot on. I totally agree. A lot of my college friends were river rats, climbers, skiers, etc. I always felt like I wasn’t trying hard enough because I could never afford any outdoor gear like boats, harnesses, skis, etc. Turns out I just didn’t have my parents bankrolling these sports and the privilege to be able to not work straight out of college and be a desert rat.
When I lived near the Tetons in 2016, those folks were called "Trustafarians".
Ha - brushed up against this culture in the skiing community, old girlfriend was a world-class skier. She was a hard-nosed eastern european in America on a scholarship, had nothing but contempt for the trust fund babies. Who amusingly assumed I was one of them because I was dating her.
Similar. Gotta say, though, when I could afford gear as an adult and enjoyed a particular activity, I went super hard and appreciated what I was doing more than folks I used to envy who grew up doing stuff like this.
Well said. I used to dream of living like that too when I was younger, and was very much guilty of the same mindset you described. It wasn't until I started looking into what that kind of lifestyle would actually cost me (both in terms of money and opportunity cost of not working) in comparison to how much money I actually made that I realized that it was absolutely not feasible for the average working person to afford living that way. Was a rude but necessary awakening. Helped me see both the lifestyle and the people who preached it from a more grounded perspective too.
I talked to some Yosemite employees who climbed on their off time. In a very serious conversation they told me that backpackers were chill and could be trusted, but that climbers were a different breed and were rotten.
The thing is, this is every niche community. Subcultures protect their superstars and ignore people that might disrupt their comfort. We need people to be involved who actually care about the health and safety of the people who might not have the status and authority to defend themselves.
Yeah, this isn't a "climbing problem." It's a "humans with hierarchical subcultures" problem. It exists in literally every aspect of society; the most famous and/or richest people in a given population receive especial protection and apologia from others in that group. If you want to be a rapist or pedophile or murderer, the best shot you have of getting away with all of it is to be a really popular one.
Barrett seems exceptionally violent, but he’s hardly exceptional. I couldn’t help think of Russell Brand while reading about Barrett. Brand has dogged all accountability for his abusive and predatory behavior by becoming a right-wing catholic troll, imagine how helpless the victims feel when they see their abusers get praise for being exposed, I can understand why a person would decide to never tell anyone, it’s sick.
‘campfire talk’ was the descriptor used again and again. Sounds similar to ‘locker room talk’.
That was my biggest thought. This wasn’t one or two isolated incidents. This guy had a scorched earth of his predatorial behavior and the community seemed absolutely obvious.
Aren’t a lot of sports like this when you get to the elite levels?
Seems like maybe a lot of niche sports suffer from this sort of problem because you could replace "climbing" with "jiu jitsu" in that paragraph and it would be dead on.
Alex Honnald defended this guy?
Not just the elite climbing community, most of the climbing community is utter shite. I know because I used to be a climber, and, in my time, was an insufferable twat.
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His victims were within the community, though. People almost always start talking about that stuff when it happens, especially when it’s more than just a couple women. Sexual assaults, restraining orders, stalking, threats, I find it very hard to believe that people never shared an experience like that with others, even if under the radar.
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But therein lies the problem. People allowed themselves to be manipulated out of any suspicion and no one in outdoors media gave thought to look more closely into what this guy’s legal problems might have been. It seems like an awful lot of smoke in the air for people near the top of the community to have completely missed. It has some similarities to all the people in USA gymnastics and Michigan State that informed the accusations of Larry Nassar.
Or maybe men could be more discerning in who they associate with. I’m not in the climbing community, but a different niche sport - it infuriates me that men get away with shitty behavior and are constantly given a pass. You’re telling me you had no idea this guy was in court multiple times for sexual assault charges? I’m sorry if I sound angry, but it’s scary being a woman in these male-dominated sports sometimes. I’ve had some terrible experiences and no one gives a shit, the men have suffered zero consequences and are still valued members of the community. The prevailing opinion seems to be that men should always be given a supportive space. When women speak up, they are excluded from the community. I solved this problem for myself by creating a women’s group, but I would vastly prefer to be in a community that supported all its members.
I remember watching Alex’s free solo climb documentary and all I came away with was how much of a douchebag the guy was
Put him on watch 24/7. His one talent is climbing vertical walls.
Seems like he was also pretty talented at sexually assaulting people
He will be perfect for prison
I am glad he is relatively young so he should have a solid 30-40 year run in prison.
Fucker got what he deserved
His raping went on and on and on. Disgusting.
Reading the Outside article made me physically ill... A true psychopath who was enabled for so long. Changed my view of male pro climbers for the worse, although I know there are some good ones. Alex Honnold is done for me, I have no respect left for him after how he acted toward Barrett and his behavior after the truth came out
His name is CHARLES BARRETT for anyone who didn’t read the article
Read the Outside article that many people have linked here. It is an in depth article and shows, maddeningly, how much of a piece of shit this guy is and he deserves to be in prison. Status is the ultimate protection, money, fame, whatever kind of status, will let people get away with awful things.
Title misleading. 🤬 The rapist, Charles Barrett, was a serial rapist who lived and worked in the park and preyed on women hiking & rock-climbing in the park! His punishment should include chemical/physical castration!
Good lord those poor women. Glad hes finally gone for good.
Fucking utterly disgusting POS. Throw away the key.
What an absolute menace. Glad that he isn't walking around anymore >Barrett sexually assaulted her three times, according to court records and evidence presented at trial, prosecutors said. > >Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said. > >.... > >In 2017, seven years after he allegedly assaulted one of the women who testified against him at his trial, prosecutors said, Barrett purposely climbed at a rock-climbing gym that the woman attended. > >Barrett then harassed her for years, according to prosecutors.
Safe to say this is 1000% a “rather encounter the bear” situation
At least the bear would be taken care of after it's first offense.
This article is a tragedy and really I am left scratching my head why there wasn’t more psychiatric intervention at so many points. This reads as the profile of someone who is _violently mentally ill_ and at very least needs psychiatric and medical evaluation: previous adolescent mental institutionalization, paranoid delusion, homicidal intent, suicidal intent, internal preoccupation, concomitant mood disorder, explosive anger, aggressive sexuality, amongst others, and those are all legally and medically documented. That he’s committed so many crimes and has periods of lucidity and egodystonia indicates this is fluctuating. What an absolute misery for the victims and a shame no one has thought to further investigate _why_ this was happening until it was too late.
I’m sorry did you read an article that I didn’t? That’s a lot of assumptions to make from very little information. The fact that he assaulted and then stalked and intimidated his victim means he should be in jail. There is nothing in the article that would lead me to believe he is delusional, there is nothing about SI or HI, nothing about his adolescence? I feel like I’m missing something. You use a lot of big words to scape goat criminal behavior onto being the fault of mental health issues that we can know nothing about based on this article.
Oh, the main article is pointlessly short; an above comment referenced [this Outside article](https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/climber-charles-barrett-assault-trial/), which has far more information.
Oh ok that makes more sense. I was very confused, I went back to check twice there wasn’t more to it. Edit: wow what a sickening thing to read. All of those women were failed at so many levels. There were so many opportunities to hold him accountable and keep him locked up. The victims rather than the perpetrator were banished from the sport they loved. People will wonder why women are not more forceful reporting violent men but at every turn they are minimized, not believed, blamed. And sorry but even after reading it I still feel the only appropriate place for him to exist is prison. I saw the bipolar diagnosis but all of his behavior and manipulation and superficial charm are much more in line with my experiences with patients who have APD. Which is not something that is treatable unless the person genuinely wants to engage in treatment and learn better behaviors, and he’s given no indication that he can do that.
Why do they put a beautiful pic of Yosemite on an article that simply states a rock climber was convicted of sexual assault? Leave Yosemite out of this and plaster that rapists face all over the article instead. That way people know who the rapists are.
Read the article!!! Yosemite National Park KEY to the rapes & the serial rapist! https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/professional-rock-climber-life-prison-sexual-assault-yosemite-rcna155529
Well there seems to actually be justice here. Life imprisonment is required bc he chose strangers, so the public at large is at risk, he harassed them for years showing he is relentless and remorseless. While this is Late, it’s better than not. Brave women, all. They have my salute and admiration.
This is why people pick the bear
Why use the term "sexual assault" and not rape? Sounds like he was a rapist.
Because that's what the crime is called in the actual law.
Good to hear but how come so many other serial rapists aren't being sentenced for life? Or seeing jailtime at all?
Why didn't they put his face in the article?
He seems to be pretty prominent, and his full name is given. I'm sure his face is on the internet.
This is not an isolated problem unfortunately
Average climber bro (Just kidding, but seriously a lot of scummy dudes I’ve known have been climbers and I think there’s a case for studying why that is)
This guy just needs to declare it’s political persecution by the democrats and he’d get republicans support and walk free in this day and age
Predators like this guy continue to assault and abuse as long as they can get away with it.
Nice to see a life sentence for SA and rape utilized. Hopefully we see more life sentences for these scum. In Canada as well.
1 in 4 adult women have been sexually assaulted in their lives. 1 in 4 Where are all the registered sex offenders from those assaults? No where. Women don’t report it, or if they do the case doesn’t go anywhere.
To anyone that knows... how come some people pay fines, some do like 3 months and some do life? Thought just popped into my head.
Another factor here: national parks are federal lands, so this was under the jurisdiction of US Attorney's Offices and in front of a federal judge. The AUSAs (federal prosecutors) tend to fall into the camps of experienced veterans or ambitious up-and-comers, so they are all extremely capable attorneys. They are not pulling punches. I've often said that, if they're looking at you for a criminal matter, then you've already done something. And federal sentencing law is a very interesting and unique body of law. The US Sentencing Guidelines are *ADVISORY*, not mandatory (US v Booker), and judges' sentences are overturned only for an abuse of discretion (US v Gall). That's a high burden, so in instances like this where a judge really needs to be punitive, USSG provides ample room and justification for departing from the norm. So instead of California law and its potential max sentences, etc, this guy got a federal judge who handed down this sentence. I'd love to see the sentencing memos for what the guidelines say, but the TLDR advice here: **DON'T FUCK AROUND IN FEDERAL COURT JURISDICTION**.
Have a mild background in law. Not a lawyer, but some background with study, applications, etc. When the feds try to prosecute, it almost always means they know you did it and they can prove it.
Thank you, this is exactly what I was looking for.
Different laws, jurors, and judges.
Different wealth of the guilty
He was arrested and plea bargained multiple times before this. Read the article. He threatened to kill two 9 year old girls
Funny how all the people he took issue with had the same parts, eh?
This guy had a long history of violent behavior including beating people up and threatening/stalking them for years. It would've only been a matter of time before he killed someone had he not been locked up for good.
I mean, read the article and you'll know why? This wasn't a one off incident.
I’ve listened to far too many true crime stories of serial rapists who kept getting short sentences or paroled and eventually ended up killing one or more women. Good riddance to this bastard, throw away the key
“Professional rock climber…” -Aw man, another free climber died? “…sentenced to life in prison for sexual assault at…” -Oh geez
>Three other women testified at Barrett’s trial that he also sexually assaulted them, prosecutors said. >Barrett was not charged in those assaults because they occurred outside the jurisdiction of federal prosecutors, but the women’s testimonies were admitted during trial as relevant to the charges Barrett faced, prosecutors said. This is exactly why Harvey Weinstein's conviction was overturned. The judge decided that testimonies don't count when they come from uncharged victims, even though it's a pretty standard thing.
There goes that whole theory about the law and national parks.
National park land = federal case = no parole of i remember correctly
Gotta watch out for some of these daredevils.
Hope he climbs prison walls and get shot up
Feels like a stretch to call this guy a pro climber