Attorney General's News Release

January 22, 2007

Judge commits Iron County man as sexually violent predator

Jefferson City, Mo. — A Reynolds County judge on Thursday (Jan. 18) found Robert Timms of Iron County to be a sexually violent predator (SVP) and committed him to the state treatment center in Farmington. Associate Circuit Judge Edith R. Rutter signed the judgment and commitment order.

The office of Attorney General Jay Nixon sought to have Timms (DOB - 6/27/47)committed as an SVP due his 1988 conviction on two counts of sodomy involving a 12-year old in Iron County. Timms received a ten-year prison sentence after his trial on a change of venue to Reynolds County; after he was paroled, Timms was convicted on another offense, 2nd degree statutory sodomy in Butler County, and received a seven-year sentence. A petition for civil commitment was filed Oct. 5, 2004.

"My office will continue to aggressively pursue the indefinite commitment of those who still pose a danger to society," Nixon said. "While they are committed, these offenders can get the treatment they need."

Those committed by the court as sexually violent predators have the right to have their cases reviewed to determine if their mental abnormality has so changed that they are not likely to commit acts of sexual violence if released.

Currently, there are 79 sexually violent predators held in civil commitment in Missouri. Sexually violent predator commitments are handled by the Public Safety Division in Nixon's office. Missouri's sexually violent predator law took effect in January 1999.

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