BORREGO SPRINGS, Calif. (KGTV) - Borrego Springs resident Terri Kellmeyer said she's been through an emotional roller coaster as of late. It's stemming from dealing with essentially back-to-back placement hearings and an approved placement for sexually violent predators in the area.
The latest hearing for sexually violent predator Douglas Badger hits too close to home for Kellmeyer. In fact, it hits right across the street from her.
"Your heart sinks. I feel like I'm melting, you know, into the floor when I lay down at night and think about, you know, the possibility of what might happen,” Kellmeyer said.
In late July, a San Diego County judge approved placing SVP Michael Martinez at a home on Running M Road.
On Friday, a different county judge will hear from the public about the placement of Badger at a home on Zuni Trail.
"So we make sure get signs out so that people are aware of things,” Lee Rogers, a community activist against the possible SVP placements, said.
Lee and Sarah Rogers, who've been leading the charge against the placements, will be there to voice their concerns about the latest SVP placement.
"They're putting a danger into a society and forcing the neighbors to live with it for no good reason,” Sarah Rogers said.
"It's not simply that you place it there and people are like, 'Oh, it's a perceived worry,' No, this really does change how people live. This changes people's lives,” Lee Rogers said.
It'll change the lives of Kellmeyer's children, particularly her 12-year-old daughter who is set to be homeschooled.
"My daughter is deaf. She relies very heavily on lip reading. And you can imagine with the masks with COVID it's just been an impossible situation. So, we've made the decision to teach her at home, to relieve her anxiety and help her with education,” Kellmeyer said. “So, yeah, it's a huge concern. I don't know how it's possible to place an SVP across the street from where a child is being educated."
County Supervisor Jim Desmond said there's a worry that if Badger's placed in Borrego Springs, it could set a precedent.
"And if they get this moniker of the dumping ground for sexually violent predators, people aren't going to want to go there and it's going to devastate the community,” Desmond said.
As the community puts up various signs protesting the possible placement, they're preparing for what they're going to say to the judge and will wait for their decision.
"All kind of emotions. The thought of, you know, is this the last night go to sleep in my home with any sort of comfort and peace,” Kellmeyer said.
The hearing for the possible placement of Badger will be Friday at 9 a.m. at the Superior Court in Downtown San Diego at 1100 Union Street.
