A 63-year-old San Rafael man was punched by an event staff member and taken to a hospital before being booked into county jail on charges connected to an alleged attempted sexual battery of a teenage girl at a crowded outdoor dance party near the Marin County Civic Center. Randall Kenneth Chase was arrested Saturday night and has since been formally charged with two misdemeanor counts as his case moves through the court system.
According to the Marin Independent Journal, the incident happened last Saturday night at the Avenue of the Flags near the Marin County Civic Center. Marin County Sheriff's spokesperson Brennan Collins said the incident occurred at a dance party in that area, and Chase was accused of attempted sexual battery against a teenage girl. An event staff member confronted Chase and punched him before he was checked at a hospital and booked at Marin County Jail.
The gathering coincided with Zombie Night: Skate of the Dead, part of Roller Disco Daze, a five-week open-air roller skating series that ran on Lagoon Island at the Marin County Fairgrounds from mid-July through Saturday, according to 7x7 Bay Area. The fairgrounds sit directly adjacent to the Civic Center campus, which was designed in 1957 by architect Frank Lloyd Wright as his only realized government building complex, per the Marin Center. The campus regularly draws large crowds for festivals and public gatherings, making Saturday's confrontation especially visible amid a packed skate night.
Charges Filed at Monday Arraignment
Chase was initially booked on counts including attempted sexual battery, annoying or molesting a child, and obstructing officers, the station's report notes. At his arraignment Monday afternoon, the county prosecutor's office formally charged him with two misdemeanor counts: attempting to touch a person against her will and obstructing officers. He was held at the Marin County Jail on $25,000 bail.
The jail where Chase was booked sits at 13 Peter Behr Drive, directly on the Civic Center campus in San Rafael, and is operated by the Marin County Sheriff's Office Detention Services Bureau, according to cc-courthelp.org. Open questions remain about the exact age of the teenage girl involved, the extent of Chase's condition following his hospital evaluation, and whether additional witness statements or fairground surveillance footage will surface as the case proceeds.
What California Law Says About the Charges
Under California Penal Code Section 243.4(e)(1), misdemeanor sexual battery involves touching an intimate part of another person against their will for sexual arousal, gratification, or abuse, and does not require unlawful restraint, according to FindLaw. That charge carries a maximum sentence of six months in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000. A conviction under that statute can also mandate registration as a sex offender under Penal Code Section 290, which for a misdemeanor generally requires Tier 1 registration for ten years with annual updates to local law enforcement, per Wallin & Klarich.
Separately, Penal Code Section 647.6 defines annoying or molesting a child under 18 as sexually motivated conduct likely to disturb or irritate a minor, a standard that does not require physical contact and carries a maximum penalty of up to one year in county jail and a $5,000 fine, per FindLaw. The obstruction count Chase now faces falls under Penal Code Section 148(a)(1), which covers resisting, delaying, or obstructing a peace officer and is punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Part of a String of Recent Marin Cases
The arrest adds to a string of recent sexual offense and public-safety cases across Marin County. In a case Hoodline previously covered, Tiburon police arrested a 29-year-old San Rafael man on suspicion of misdemeanor sexual battery and felony false imprisonment after an alleged assault along a local pedestrian trail. In March, San Rafael police coordinated a sting operation at the Civic Center courthouse that led to the arrest of a 21-year-old man on suspicion of sexual assault offenses involving a minor, while a separate May incident saw a 64-year-old man arrested near downtown San Rafael after allegedly confronting a group of juveniles and throwing a bicycle at a young rider.
