First One Strike Law Case Ends with Guilty Verdict, Life in Prison for Santa Ana Man

SANTA ANA, CA — For the first time in Orange County history, a man was sentenced to life in state prison without parole on Friday for forcibly raping a preteen girl resulting in pregnancy.

The Orange County District Attorney's Office released a statement saying that Demetrio Rojas Perez, 40, of Santa Ana, was found guilty by a jury on June 27 of four felony counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child under 14 and one felony count of forcible lewd acts on a child under 14. Deputy District Attorney Mena Guirguis of the Sexual Assault Unit prosecuted this case.

“Short of the death penalty, life in state prison without parole is the strongest punishment we have in our justice system," Guirguis said. "It is reserved for the most monstrous of crimes. The defendant in this case is very deserving of the punishment."

Guirguis declined to say how the defendant knew the victim because it might out her publicly.

Perez was deported in 2013 after a conviction in a domestic violence case, Guirguis said.

The defendant found his way back to California that year and began sexually assaulting the victim in December 2013, the prosecutor said. The victim testified she was sexually assaulted at least 20 times, Guirguis said. The victim attempted to fight back and scream, but the defendant covered her mouth and threatened to kill the victim and her family if she reported the assaults," the DA's release stated. "Perez continued to attack the victim over the course of seven months."

In mid-2014, the victim discovered she was pregnant and reported the rapes, confirming Perez had impregnated her. The Santa Ana Police Department investigated this case.

"It's the highest form of punishment we have short of death, and if anyone deserves it it's him,'' Guirguis said.

The victim is "an amazing young girl,'' who has shown enough strength to get through the ordeal, Guirguis said.

"Sentencing enhancement allegations for inflicting bodily harm on a victim under 14 years of age and personally inflicting great bodily injury during the commission of the above offenses were found to be true," the District Attorney's Office stated in release.

"For the first time in an Orange County sexual assault case, Perez was sentenced to life in state prison without the possibility of parole, plus 60 years to life in state prison," the DA's office said. "Perez was in a position of trust with access to the victim."

The defendant was sentenced to life in state prison without parole under California’s One Strike Law, which was enacted in 1994. A penal code was amended to add a mandatory sentence of life in state prison when certain underlying forcible sex crimes were committed against a minor victim, along with major factors, the DAs office stated.

"In our case, forcible lewd acts on a child under 14 is a qualifying offense and the sentencing allegations of bodily harm to a victim under 14 years of age and great bodily injury are each major factors," the DA's office stated.

City News Service contributed to this report. Booking Photo, Orange County District Attorney's Office Photo