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Statistically, the vast majority of rapists do not even get a conviction — let alone a prison sentence.
There are exceptions. Serial rapist Andrew Luster received a conviction and a 124-year sentence.
It has not been 124 years, or even a fifth of that.
Luster is now out of prison. How did this happen?
This infamous case dates back a quarter of a century
In 2000, authorities in LOCATION arrested Luster after a college student reported being drugged and raped at his home.
Investigators who searched his home found that not only had he dosed women with GHB and raped them while they were unable to consent and unlikely to remember the crime, but he had also made video recordings — trophies of his crimes.
Luster’s case gained media attention because of the evidence that he himself had preserved, but also because of his family wealth. He is the great-grandson of cosmetics mogul Max Factor.
When he paid his $1 million bail, he also skipped town instead of showing up to defend himself at trial.
As a result, the court convicted Luster of 86 felony counts en absentia in 2003 while he hid out in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. His sentences, should he be found and brought into custody, would be consecutive — meaning 124 years behind bars.
Eventually, due to his flight from justice, the FBI issued a warrant.
It was, oddly enough, Duane “Dog The Bounty Hunter” Chapman who captured him in June 2003.
After both parties were arrested by authorities in Mexico. Luster was transferred to US custody. Chapman ended up fleeing Mexico to the United States.
In March 2013, when Luster had served less than a decade of his richly-deserved sentence, the verdict was set aside on the grounds that the original court had failed to explain why the sentences were to be served consecutively. (That sounds self-explanatory — as Luster had drugged and raped multiple victims, all of whom deserve justice.)
The court rebuffed the rapist’s attempts to overturn his convictions. However, he received a new sentencing hearing. His new sentence was for only 50 years behind bars.
From 124 years to 50 years to about 20, somehow
If you will check your calendars and do some simple calculations, you may find that it has not been even close to 50 years.
Luster was denied parole repeatedly in recent years. Unfortunately, it did not last.
On October 11, 2026, Luster was released
He is now reportedly residing in the area of Glendora, California.
Neighbors are unhappy. The mayor is unhappy. And the people of California are deeply dissatisfied to know that a serial predator who certainly has not become a better person during incarceration is out free after serving less than one-sixth of his original sentence.
Some blame Proposition 57, a 2016 referendum in California that expanded early releases for non-violent offenders.
Luster is a serial rapist and thus a violent offender. Then-governor Jerry Brown specifically highlighted his case to note that he would be ineligible under this law.
A lot of people are simply flabbergasted that the system that should be protecting the American people is incarcerating people who have never harmed anyone while releasing monsters like Luster.
There is a lot of debate over the best way to handle rapists. These predators rely upon people mistakenly believing that they made mistakes or misunderstood. It’s likely that Luster might have received a lighter sentence or no convictions at all if he had not personally recorded his crimes.
Whether someone believes in abolition or expanding the death penalty or anything in between these extremes, we can hopefully all agree that unleashing Luster back into society is simply not the answer.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thehollywoodgossip.com
