Andrew Stuart Luster, the Max Factor cosmetics heir convicted of drugging and raping three women at his Ventura County home, is a free man again, and this time he is reportedly living in Glendora. The release has stirred outrage across the San Gabriel Valley community, with Glendora's mayor publicly condemning the move and raising alarms about Luster's proximity to schools, parks and churches.
Luster was convicted in absentia in 2003 on 86 felony counts tied to drugging and sexually assaulting three women, as reported by KTLA. According to the Los Angeles Times, his crimes included poisoning, rape, sodomy and oral copulation of unconscious victims. Between 1996 and 2000, Luster used the illegal drug gamma-hydroxybutyrate, commonly known as GHB, to render women unconscious before assaulting them, per the Los Angeles Times. A jury later viewed video Luster had made of himself engaging in sexual acts with women who were unconscious from the drug.
Luster fled to Mexico after posting $1 million bail in 2003, and bounty hunter Duane “Dog” Chapman tracked him down and captured him in Puerto Vallarta, the Los Angeles Times reports. While a fugitive, Luster compiled what has been described as a payback list naming Ventura County prosecutors, sheriff's deputies, victims and an attorney, according to the seed reporting. His own attorneys later argued that a former lawyer had frightened him into fleeing by warning he would be killed in prison, though a judge ultimately found his departure to Mexico had been voluntary.
A Sentence Slashed From 124 Years to 50
Luster was originally sentenced to 124 years in prison in 2003. A decade later, Judge Kathryne Ann Stoltz found that sentence unusually long and vacated it, a decision the Los Angeles Times and KTLA both confirm, with Stoltz describing the crime tapes as disturbing and noting that the victims appeared lifeless in the footage. His sentence was subsequently reduced to 50 years. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has said Luster served his full sentence as required by law and that his release was not early, the seed reporting states.
That reduction set the stage for Proposition 57, the 2016 ballot measure intended to ease overcrowding in state prisons. The measure authorized corrections officials to award sentencing credits that shorten prison time and allowed nonviolent offenders to appear before the parole board more frequently, according to the seed facts. Rape of an unconscious person is classified as a nonviolent offense under that technical legal framework, the Ventura County District Attorney's Office told KCLU in 2023, and people convicted of nonviolent felonies typically must serve only half their sentence. Luster reportedly accumulated 977 days of work-time and good-conduct credit toward his release.
Even so, state guidance is explicit that the measure does not guarantee anyone's freedom. Proposition 57 does not create a right to release for nonviolent offenders, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; it only gives the parole board authority to review eligible inmates and approve release if they no longer pose an unreasonable threat. The California Supreme Court's ruling on the measure likewise did not require immediate parole for any particular inmate, and corrections officials and the parole board must still evaluate each person's suitability case by case, per Courthouse News Service.
A Parole Fight That Dragged On for Years
The parole board moved to grant Luster early release in 2024, a decision all three of his victims opposed at the hearing, the seed reporting states. The Ventura County District Attorney's Office challenged that proposed release, with prosecutors arguing Luster continued to misrepresent his crimes and remained a threat to public safety. Parole board commissioners ultimately reversed the early-release decision that year, a reversal the Los Angeles Times reports came after the board had initially granted it in August.
Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said in 2025 that his office would continue opposing any early release from state prison, even as his own office acknowledged Luster would be released in late 2026 regardless, given his reduced sentence. That release ultimately came to pass: Luster was released to parole supervision on October 11, according to the seed reporting, though the Los Angeles Times separately noted he had been scheduled for release no later than October 31, 2026, if not paroled sooner. KTLA has reported his release followed roughly 20 years of incarceration, while other accounts put his time served, including house arrest and pretrial custody, at about 25 years. Luster's age has also been reported inconsistently across outlets, with figures ranging from 59 to 62.
Glendora's Mayor Demands Answers
Luster is now reportedly residing in the San Gabriel Valley, specifically in Glendora, according to KTLA, prompting a swift rebuke from City Hall. Glendora Mayor David Fredendall said his community was outraged at the release, and the city's statement attributed Luster's freedom to California voter-approved laws that facilitate early release for people convicted of nonviolent felonies. Fredendall said Luster's presence near schools, parks, playgrounds, churches and community centers raised serious safety concerns for residents, per the City of Glendora.
Luster, the great-grandson of Max Factor Sr., the founder of the cosmetics brand that still bears his name, built his fortune on that family legacy even as he drugged young women he met in college bars during the late 1990s. The Los Angeles Times reports the San Gabriel Valley community has responded to his release with outrage, and city officials have made clear they intend to keep pressing the state on why a man convicted of 86 felony counts is now walking their streets.
