A man who was caught on camera sexually assaulting a woman in broad daylight in downtown Long Beach has been charged with a misdemeanor, and was due back in a Long Beach courtroom Thursday.
Security cameras captured Miguel Avila walking up behind a woman, unzipping his pants, lifting her skirt and pressing himself against her, causing her to fall to the ground.
A good Samaritan was seated nearby and rushed to assist the woman, leading Avila to flee the scene.
Avila was caught by Long Beach Police hours later.
The LA District Attorney’s Office declined to press felony charges in the case, and Avila will be tried for misdemeanor sexual battery by the Long Beach City Prosecutor’s Office, a charge which carries a maximum penalty of 6 months and/or a $2,000 fine. In Long Beach, felonies are tried by the DA’s Office while misdemeanors are prosecuted by the City Prosecutor.
Avila was originally held on a $1,000 bail, which has recently been increased to $75,000. Individuals can get out of jail if they pay for 10% of their bond, meaning Avila could previously have been bailed out for $100. Now he needs to pay $7,500 to be released while his trial continues.
Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón has received ongoing criticism during his time in office, with detractors saying he’s soft on crime.
In an email to the Signal Tribune, LBPD said “To help keep our community safe, we have increased our patrols in the area and our Neighborhood Safety Bike Team is proactively engaging with residents and neighborhood groups.”
[A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that “The LA County Prosecutor’s office has decided to charge Avila for misdemeanor sexual battery.” The Signal Tribune regrets this error.]
The DA’s need to stop being so soft on crime. My wife and I had a mom and pop shop and a homeless lady broke our window climbed in to steal clothing. LB pd pulled her out of our store, arrested her and she was released 2 weeks later. The charges were dropped btmy the DA. Than, she had the nerve to come back to our shop. We closed our shop due to the surrounding problems in that area.
Um, there is no such thing as the “LA County Prosecutor’s office”. There’s the county DA, which generally handles felonies, and the City Prosecutor, which handles misdemeanors. Which is it?