Convicted Sex Offender Randall Hopley Sentenced to 18 More Months in Jail Following Escape Attempt
A Canadian judge has sentenced Randall Hopley, a convicted sex offender, to an additional 18 months in prison for breaching his long-term supervision order twice in 2022 and 2023.
Judge Jennifer Oulton handed down a 29-month sentence to Mr. Hopley, with credit for 11 months served, during a court hearing in Vancouver.
The 58-year-old went missing for 10 days after leaving his halfway house in Downtown Eastside and removing his ankle monitor last November, according to Judge Oulton.
Mr. Hopley admitted to the breach last month, and Judge Oulton noted his admission and eventual capture at a police station as mitigating factors.
In addition, Mr. Hopley pleaded guilty to breaching his 10-year supervision order by being around children under 16 in November 2022.
Released under the conditions of the order in 2018, following a six-year prison term for abducting a three-year-old boy in 2011, Mr. Hopley was living in a Vancouver halfway house when he was arrested for the latest violations.
While on bail, he failed to appear for a scheduled trial date, resulting in another guilty plea.
Offering 1.5 days’ credit for each of the 333 days spent in custody since early 2023, Judge Oulton considered both the Crown’s request for 37 more months in jail and the defense’s plea for a 13-month sentence with credit for time served.
Mr. Hopley’s criminal history includes a 1985 conviction for sexually assaulting a child, resulting in two years in jail and three years of probation when he was 19.
Referring to a 2013 summary by a previous judge, Judge Oulton highlighted Mr. Hopley’s past behavior of sexual offenses against children, with a psychiatrist’s report indicating three such offenses when he was 16 and 17.
Mr. Hopley disputed the claim during the hearing, insisting there were only two assaults, not three.
Despite Mr. Hopley’s interruption, Judge Oulton explained that there were avenues to address any factual inaccuracies.
