Santa Maria Man Withdraws Molestation Plea

Local businessman Clive Decomarmond pleaded guilty last month to 21 counts of child molestation involving lewd acts with several underage teenage girls, many of the allegations taking place inside his home in Santa Maria.

Decomarmond was staring at 42 years in state prison when he told the judge at his sentencing in Santa Maria Superior Court Thursday that he wanted to take back his guilty plea.

“He has fired his attorney, in essence, and the Public Defender was appointed”, says Santa Barbara County Deputy District Attorney Brandon Jebens who prosecuted the case against Decomarmond, “the next step is for the Public Defender to take a look at the case, see if there is any merit to his motion to withdraw the plea.”

Decomarmond was given an ankle bracelet after he skipped town and jumped bail before the start of his trial late last year.

He was found in Texas and extradited back to Santa Barbara County where he agreed to plead guilty to the child molestation charges against him avoiding a life in prison sentence.

“He avoided a life sentence by pleading to 42 years”, Jebens says, “now he wants to undo that and face a possible life sentence again.”

Decomarmond’s eleventh hour tactic stunned family, friends and supporters of his victims, some of whom were in court, for what they thought was going to be his sentencing.

Several members of the local chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse, or BACA were also in court to show their support for the victims in the case.

“I’m disappointed in the court system, it seems like they are allowing more loop holes to come about for this perpetrator”, says Skeeter Martin of the local BACA chapter, “put it to bed, let the children get on with their lives, instead of having to keep coming back to court, having to deal with this, knowing that there may be a chance that he could escape again and run away again.”

Clive Decomarmond is being held at Santa Barbara County Jail with no bail allowed.

He will return to Santa Maria Superior Court later this month to learn his fate.