Overview
- Prosecutors filed criminal counts on Oct. 16, 2026, that were unsealed late October and led to an arrest warrant executed by the U.S. Marshals Service with help from the California Highway Patrol.
- Charles “Chuck” William Starnes III, 52, was booked on four felony counts including kidnapping to commit a sex offense, two counts of sexual penetration by a foreign object, and assault with intent to commit a sexual offense.
- The charges describe two alleged attacks: a March 2007 incident in which Starnes is accused of dragging a fellow officer from a Stanton bar into a parking lot and assaulting her, and a March 2020 incident in which he is accused of assaulting a civilian police employee during a car ride after an off‑probation party.
- Starnes joined Garden Grove in 2005, served as president of the Garden Grove Police Officers’ Association, worked as a traffic sergeant in 2025, and retired in May 2026 while on administrative leave during an internal probe.
- Senior Deputy District Attorney Sarah Rahman is prosecuting the case and the Orange County district attorney says Starnes faces a maximum exposure of seven years to life plus 14 years if convicted, signaling heightened public and institutional scrutiny as the case moves through court.