San Francisco Chronicle - December 10, 2004
Jaxon Van Derbeken at jvanderbeken@sfchronicle.com.

Roberto Gamero, through his attorney, pleaded not guilty to "any and all allegations" stemming from the alleged attack Sunday at a home on Silver Avenue. He is set to return to court Tuesday.

Police say Gamero entered the girl's home through an unlocked window, raped her in her bed and forced her to engage in sex acts over the course of an hour in what one police investigator described as "a parent's worst nightmare."

The girl's mother awoke around 7:45 a.m. and found the assailant, police said. The father chased the naked attacker out of the house and through the neighborhood, hitting him at one point with a 2-by-4.

Police eventually found Gamero hiding in a bush and arrested him.

On Thursday, over the objection of Gamero's public defender, Superior Court Judge Newton Lam ordered that Gamero submit to blood tests to determine whether he has HIV or other infectious diseases.

Assistant District Attorney Linda Moore said such tests were of the "utmost concern," given the nature of the crime and the potential exposure of a 9-year-old girl who had already been forced to undergo a "serious regimen" of treatment after the assault.

But Deputy Public Defender Kwixuan Maloof objected to a forced blood draw, saying the law requires that the alleged victim ask for one in writing.

"I'm going to grant the motion," Lam replied. "The victim is a minor."

The defense also sought a gag order on all parties in the case, and Lam scheduled a hearing for Tuesday. In the meantime, the judge ordered that "both sides be very circumspect" in their comments about the case.

Gamero, who has lived in San Francisco for several years, does not have a criminal history of child molestation. He was convicted of sexual battery of an adult in 1992 in San Mateo, but the law did not require him to register as a sex offender, authorities said.

He was given nine months in the county jail and three years' probation, records show. The case reverted to a misdemeanor when he completed probation, authorities said.

In 1999, Gamero was arrested and ultimately convicted of domestic violence in San Francisco. The victim, whom authorities would not identify, suffered facial injuries, and Gamero was placed on probation. He violated probation repeatedly and served at least two terms in county jail, records show.

The violations included failing to undergo domestic violence counseling.

Law enforcement officials were puzzled that Gamero had no previous history of child molestation, given the nature of Sunday's alleged attack.

"It is very unusual that someone of this age starts behavior like this," said Capt. Marsha Ashe of the police juvenile division. "This is also an extremely unusual crime -- which is fortunate because it's so obviously heinous."

Gamero was defiant when he was arrested and said he would escape punishment in a city known for its leniency, Ashe said. "He was pretty sure he was going to skate on this, saying, 'This is San Francisco,' " she said.

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