Man accused of rapes
has violent past

The suspect was convicted in
an attack on a prostitute
in 1993

A Waialua man charged this week with raping two downtown prostitutes has a long history of such assaults, authorities say, and recently finished a 10-year prison term for an attack in which he broke a prostitute's back.

Michael Lee Carter, 36, of 1624 Kuhi St., who has been described by his former therapist and parole officer as a violent and dangerous sex offender, made his initial appearance yesterday in Honolulu District Court. He remains in custody in lieu of $50,000 bail.

Carter was arrested early Wednesday on Nuuanu Avenue after the alleged victims, both downtown prostitutes, spotted him driving in the area and identified him to police as the man who had allegedly sexually assaulted them on March 18 and 19 and April 2.

He was booked for suspicion of first-degree assault, kidnapping and second-degree impersonation of a police officer. He was charged with two counts of first-degree assault.

The woman in the alleged April 2 rape said a man in a red car pulled up to her behind the Pali Longs Drug store, made her get in and drove her to a dirt lot at Pier 41, according to a police affidavit.

He allegedly identified himself as a police officer and threatened to arrest her if she did not have sex with him, according to the affidavit. The victim refused, police said.

Carter allegedly beat her and locked the door so she could not escape, police said. After raping her, he allegedly drove off, leaving her without her shirt, the affidavit said. She did not report it at that time because she thought no one would believe her, police said.

Details in the alleged March incidents involving another prostitute were not available.

Deputy Prosecutor Jean Ireton said yesterday that Carter is dangerous, and, based on his sex assault conviction, she will ask that his bail be increased.

Carter, a former Navy engineer who transferred here from San Diego in May 1993, was convicted of attacking a prostitute just months after his arrival here. He was arrested on Oct. 6, 1993, on two counts of first-degree sexual assault, kidnapping and second-degree assault. The victim was treated for multiple bruises and a fractured vertebrae.

According to the victim, a man approached her in his car asking if she was dating. They agreed to have sex for $100, and he drove to Pier 36.

When they arrived, she asked him for her money, but he told her she was "giving it free tonight" and attacked her.

The woman fought back, and they struggled for more than 15 minutes, she later told a counselor. She said he hit her numerous times. He finally threw her out of the car and drove away, leaving with her purse and shoes. She got his license number and flagged down a motorist who called police.

Some 45 minutes later, Carter was pulled over by a police officer on Dillingham Boulevard. Sitting in the car with Carter was another prostitute.

When the patrolman told him he was being investigated for a possible sexual assault, he responded by saying, "I know who you are talking about. She tried to rob me."

In asking for high bail in that case, prosecutors noted that Carter was a suspect in a similar case involving another victim allegedly assaulted at knifepoint. Details of that incident were not available.

While awaiting trial, Carter was denied supervised release. The Navy refused to sponsor him because he had gone AWOL that month and was classified as a deserter. They also said he was a suspect in another sexual assault that involved military personnel.

Carter pleaded guilty to reduced charges in February 1994 under a plea bargain in which he agreed to cooperate with military authorities in the prosecution of another man in an Aug. 8, 1993, sex assault at military housing.

In court, Carter admitted that he picked up the prostitute and tried to have sex with her. "We got into a fight and she got hurt," he said. "I didn't have any money to pay her."

Carter was sentenced in March 1994 to five years' probation on each of the four counts, with one year in jail.

In August 1994 the state of Ohio agreed to take over supervision of Carter while he was on probation, and he moved to Ohio in October 1994.

Less than a year after moving to Ohio, Carter had violated numerous terms of his probation, including frequenting areas where prostitutes congregated, according to probation reports.

In March 1995, David Connell, the sex offender therapist treating Carter, notified the probation office that he was concerned about Carter's compulsive need to "cruise" for prostitutes. He noted Carter thought about offending on a daily basis and was not satisfied until he had sex with a prostitute.

On Aug. 21, 1995, Carter was arrested by Toledo police for suspicion of assault and driving with a suspended license. A 22-year-old woman identified him as the man who had attacked her after offering her a ride.

He denied the woman ever entered his car, and said he did not know she was a prostitute.

Based on that arrest, Carter was also arrested for probation violations, and the Honolulu probation office was notified.

Tammy Harris, his parole officer in Ohio, concluded that the community "is in need of protection from this violent and dangerous sex offender" and requested that Hawaii authorities issue a probation violation warrant and return him to Hawaii.

In Hawaii he was resentenced in January 1996 to 10 years' imprisonment.

The Hawaii Parole Board paroled Carter on Feb. 9, 1999. He was returned to custody eight months later for violating parole but was paroled again on Feb. 25, 2002.

He returned to prison on May 15, 2003, for another violation, obtaining Internet service without approval of his parole officer, said parole administrator Tommy Johnson. Sex offenders normally cannot have Internet access. His parole was revoked for the remainder of his 10-year sentence. When he was released on Feb. 7, he had completed his sentence and could no longer be held, Johnson said.