Charge Dropped Against Transient Accused In Rohnert Park Incident

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — A Sonoma County Superior County judge this morning dismissed a charge of assault with intent to commit a sex crime against a Rohnert Park man after prosecutors said there was insufficient evidence. The Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety said Matthew Damon Madrid, 44, chased a 15-year-old girl and tried to grab her on Camino Colegio around 3 p.m. on May 10. The girl told police she was able to run away.

The Department of Public Safety released a sketch of the suspect based on the description the teen gave, and other law enforcement agencies and citizens gave tips that led to the identity of Madrid, a Santa Rosa-area
transient, as a suspect.

The girl also selected Madrid's photo among photos of other possible suspects, public safety officials said. Madrid was arrested June 6 and was booked under $50,000 bail for assault with intent to commit a sex
crime. The charge does not require physical contact with the victim.

At his arraignment on June 7, Madrid, vehemently and with profanity, denied he sexually assaulted the girl.

"I didn't rape her. You f---ing got to be kidding me," Madrid repeated.

Outside of the courtroom after the arraignment, Madrid's mother said her son has mental health issues but the alleged conduct was completely out of his character.

A preliminary hearing on the charge that was scheduled for June 20 was continued pending further investigation, and Madrid was released from jail.

Judge Jennifer Dollard this morning granted Deputy District Attorney Javier Vaca's motion to dismiss the complaint because of insufficient evidence.

"They got the wrong guy," Madrid's attorney Michael Teply said after the dismissal.

A man in a parked pickup truck who witnessed the assault called the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office recently to report he just saw the suspect again, Teply said.

Madrid, however, was in the Sonoma County Jail that day, Teply said.

The truck driver never identified Madrid as the suspect in a lineup, and the victim was less than 100-percent certain when she identified Madrid's photograph, Teply said.

"She said it might have been him," Teply said.

The sketch of the suspect released by the Department of Public Safety did resemble Madrid, but Madrid is 6 feet tall and the truck driver said the suspect he saw was 5 feet 6 or 8 inches, Teply said.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Brian Staebell said this morning new evidence about the suspect's identification led to the dismissal of the charge against Madrid, and there was not enough evidence against him to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt.

"We're asking anyone with information about that day to come forward to law enforcement. We're still actively investigating," Staebell said.

RELATED COVERAGE:

• Suspect Followed, Tried To Grab Rohnert Park Girl: Police
• Transient Suspected Of Chasing, Trying To Grab Rohnert Park Girl
• Transient Charged With Assault With Intent To Commit Sex Crime

By Bay City News Service

Images courtesy Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety