A previous finding that a Turlock man convicted of kidnapping and raping a woman was suitable for parole has been overturned, resulting in continued confinement for the felon.

A rescission hearing conducted by the State Board of Parole determined the parole recommendation for Daniel Ray Slayter, 44, of Turlock was based on inaccurate information and therefore denied his parole.

Slayter was sentenced to prison for the rape and kidnapping of a 19-year-old woman in Turlock. In 1994, Slayter approached a 19-year-old woman who was working in the office of the Brentwood Apartments in Turlock. He forced her into her car at knifepoint and made her drive to a canal bank off of Highway 140. He raped her on the canal bank and then took her car, leaving her stranded on the side of the road. He was convicted of rape, kidnapping during a carjacking, carjacking, use of a knife, assault with a deadly weapon and false imprisonment and was sentenced to a 15-year-to life prison sentence.

On May 27, 2015 Slayter was found suitable for parole during a hearing of the State Board of Parole Hearings at Valley State Prison, Chowchilla. The Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office, represented by Deputy District Attorney Jeff Laugero, argued for continued confinement based on the nature of the offense, the inmate’s lack of insight into the crime, prior criminal history, and a flawed Comprehensive Risk Assessment used in the hearing.

A Comprehensive Risk Assessment is a document prepared by a forensic psychologist which identifies and considers certain factors to determine the risk an inmate may pose to the community if released on parole.

The district attorney’s office argued that the CRA was flawed because it contained incorrect information about Slayter’s prior criminal acts. According to the district attorney’s office the CRA stated Slayter had no prior sex offenses, no prior convictions for non-sexual violence, and no male victims. At the original parole hearing Laugero presented evidence to the parole board hearing of an arrest for statutory rape of a 16-year-old girl, an arrest for a strong-armed robbery of a pizza delivery man, a conviction for battery and vandalism of a male victim, and a 1993 conviction on a charge of attempted burglary.

Slayter was sentenced to 15-years to life in prison.

Each finding of suitability for parole is subject to independent review by the Office of the Governor. During a review at the Board of Parole Hearings Executive Board meeting on Oct. 20, 2015, Laugero once again made an appeal to have Slayter’s parole denied.

“Based on the arguments presented, the issues raised with the CRA and the Governor’s concerns, the matter was scheduled for a rescission hearing,” the district attorney’s office stated in a news release.

At the hearing, which was held Feb. 18, the panel agreed with the district attorney’s office that inmate Slayter’s previous finding of suitability for parole was based on inaccurate information in the CRA. A subsequent assessment based on the corrected information found inmate Slayter to pose a moderate to high risk of reoffending and parole was denied.  

Slayter had previously been denied parole five times. His next parole hearing is for June of this year.