A former Garden Grove police sergeant pleaded not guilty to felony charges after prosecutors accused him of sexually assaulting two female colleagues across more than a decade.
Charles “Chuck” William Starnes III, 52, was arrested Oct. 29 by the U.S. Marshals Service and faces four felony counts including multiple charges of sexual assault and kidnapping, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office announced. He remains jailed on $5 million bail following his Friday arraignment.
The alleged first attack dates to March 2007, when Starnes was a police officer and president of the local police union. Prosecutors said he kidnapped a female colleague as she exited a women’s restroom at a Stanton bar, dragged her outside into the parking lot, and assaulted her there until two fellow officers intervened.
The second alleged assault occurred in March 2020. Starnes is accused of sexually assaulting a female department employee while driving back from an “off probation” party at a Long Beach bar. The attack allegedly happened as the pair were traveling to the Garden Grove Police Association Stress Release Center, a makeshift bar and lounge for police personnel run by the police association.
Starnes joined the Garden Grove Police Department in 2005 after serving as a Riverside County sheriff’s deputy. He later became president of the Garden Grove Police Officers’ Association and was assigned to the department’s Traffic Operations Unit as a sergeant.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer addressed the case directly, emphasizing that Starnes’ former rank offered no protection.
“The badge is not a shield from accountability, and we are grateful that these acts of sexual violence have finally come to light so that justice can be pursued on behalf of these victims who suffered in silence,” Spitzer said.
He continued: “Sexual assault is an act of cowardice, and it takes incredible courage for victims to come forward and speak out against someone in a position of power.”
Starnes retired in May 2026 while on administrative leave and under investigation for sexual harassment, according to prosecutors.
His attorney, Brian Gurwitz, told the Los Angeles Times that his client denies all allegations and was “eager for the truth to be presented in a courtroom.”
The Garden Grove Police Department issued a statement saying it would continue cooperating with authorities as the investigation proceeds.
If convicted on all counts, Starnes faces a potential sentence of up to seven years to life plus an additional 14 years in state prison.