A Los Angeles County judge ordered Hannah Tubbs, a transgender California woman, to serve two years in a juvenile facility after she pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a 10-year-old girl in 2014 while she herself was still a minor.
Tubbs, 26, recently pleaded guilty to molesting the girl in a women’s bathroom eight years ago when Tubbs was two weeks away from turning 18. At the time of the crime, she identified as male and went by James Tubbs. She did not identify as female until after she was taken into custody, according to prosecutors.
“Tubbs is 26 years old. Unlike George Gascon’s false narrative, she is not a ‘kid,'” L.A. Deputy District Attorney Jon Hatami, assigned to the Complex Child Abuse Unit, told Fox News Digital.
“There was evidence presented at the juvenile proceedings which showed that Tubbs sexually assaulted two young girls in different incidents in the past. The child victims will suffer lifelong trauma. Tubbs also has prior violent convictions and conduct as an adult.”
Prosecutors say Tubbs walked into the bathroom of a Denny’s in 2014 and grabbed the 10-year-old by the throat, locked her in a stall, and put her hand down the girl’s pants. Tubbs stopped when another person walked into the restroom, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Because Tubbs began identifying as female after she was taken into custody, and Gascon refused to try her as an adult, Tubbs was sentenced to two years in a juvenile facility. In L.A. County, juvenile facilities can house both females and males, but in separate areas. Tubbs will be housed with the females.
Two years is the maximum sentence for any juvenile in the new program over the age of 25, according to Deputy District Attorney Shea Sanna.
The sentencing sparked criticism of Gascon, who had vowed to “immediately stop prosecuting children as adults.” Gascon has cited studies showing brain development isn’t complete until a person is 25 and contends juvenile detention can rehabilitate young offenders.
Judge Mario Barrera also criticized Gascon saying he has been left with no option but to give a simple sentence in a juvenile detention center to Tubbs that also included not having to register as a sex offender. “I want to be clear. The filing of a transfer motion is entirely within the discretion of the district attorney. Because of George Gascon’s blanket policy against transferring any juvenile to adult court, even if the 17-year-old rapes or murders an innocent child, James [now Hannah] Tubbs will not have to register as a sex offender, will not spend any time in county jail or state prison, will be 26 and housed with juveniles for a very short period of time, and will be released with no probation or parole monitoring.”
LA Deputy District Attorney Jon Hatami also noted: “Tubbs is 26 years old. Unlike George Gascon’s false narrative, she is not a ‘kid’. There was evidence presented at the juvenile proceedings which showed that Tubbs sexually assaulted two young girls in different incidents in the past. The child victims will suffer lifelong trauma. Tubbs also has prior violent convictions and conduct as an adult,” before adding: “’The victims will get no justice. The public will get no safety. It’s an injustice against all of us, especially the young victims.”
