A professional California rock climber who brutally assaulted a woman in Yosemite National Park was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, authorities said.
The 40-year-old was convicted in February of two counts of sexual assault and one count of sexual battery. According to a statement from U.S. Attorney Philip A. Talbert.
According to court records and evidence presented at trial, Barrett sexually assaulted the woman three times over the course of a weekend in August 2016 while he was living and working at the national park.
Three other women also testified at Barrett’s trial that they had been sexually assaulted, according to prosecutors.
Barrett was not charged with these assaults because they were outside federal jurisdiction, but the victim’s testimony was admitted at trial as relevant to the charges he faced.
Talbert said Barrett deserves a life sentence because of his “long history of sexual violence.”
“He used his status as a prominent climber to prey on women in the rock climbing community, and when victims began to come forward, Barrett publicly attacked them with threats and intimidation,” Talbert said. “This case is a testament to the bravery of the victims who came forward with these crimes.”
Court documents also revealed that Barrett had threatened the women he assaulted.
In 2017, seven years after assaulting one of the victims who spoke out, Barrett showed up at the rock climbing gym the victim had been climbing at.
Prosecutors said the victim told the gym owner to protect other women at the gym, but Barrett “harassed and threatened her for several years.”
Prosecutors said Barrett made hundreds of phone calls after being taken into custody in 2022, showing “no remorse or regret.”
“Instead, he claimed his victims had conspired to ruin his life and threatened violence and vindictive legal action.”
