Santa Rosa Man Granted Probation Over District Attorney’s Objection Following Convictions for Sexually Assaulting And Disfiguring A Stranger

Defendant Trevor Colombano, 38 years old of Santa Rosa, was sentenced today by the Honorable Dana Simonds to a term of probation after he pled “no contest” to charges including mayhem (with a further allegation that he used a deadly weapon,) assault with a deadly weapon (with a further allegation that he inflicted great bodily injury upon the victim,) as well as sexual battery. The District Attorney’s Office, the Court’s Probation Department, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the victim, all recommended or requested Colombano be sentenced to state prison.

On October 28, 2023, the victim took her dog for a walk in Santa Rosa on a sunny Saturday afternoon. She stepped outside of her apartment on Sonoma Avenue near Howarth Park and was approached from behind by Colombano. Colombano rubbed his erect penis on the victim’s buttocks, and when she rebuffed his advances, brutally attacked her. Colombano struck the victim on her head several times with a closed fist, and the attack then took a horrific turn when Colombano retrieved a landscaping rock and repeatedly bashed the victim’s face with it. The attack occurred while the victim’s 13-year-old daughter and 13-year-old cousin looked on helplessly. It only stopped when two bystanders wrestled Colombano to the ground and held him until Santa Rosa police arrived. The victim was left with several lacerations to her scalp and a full-thickness laceration to her lip. The injuries required 17 sutures, 5 staples, and left her permanently disfigured. Colombano also ripped off the victim’s shirt and bra during the attack.

The victim gave an emotional statement to the Court at Colombano’s sentencing, stating, “When you have a stranger attack you in the way I was attacked, it felt like my ability to be strong was taken away from me. I have cried more in the last six months than I have in my entire lifetime…my daughter and my little cousin, both thirteen at the time, had to witness the whole thing…I cannot even put into words the feeling of not being able to protect yourself or your child at the same time.” The victim has since moved out of the State of California and asked the Court to sentence Colombano to prison.

Colombano faced a maximum prison sentence of 9 years, in addition to 18 months in the county jail for his crimes. Prior to trial the defendant pled guilty to all charges against him, with no sentencing agreements by the district attorney. At yesterday afternoon’s sentencing hearing the district attorney’s office asked for the 9-year prison sentence to be imposed. The Court’s Probation Department also recommended a prison sentence, noting “the defendant is statutorily limited from receiving probation and we cannot, even after much effort considering the complexities, favorable, and mitigating factors involved in this case, identify any factors that mark this matter an unusual case for probation consideration.” The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation agreed and recommended a prison sentence as well. The Honorable Judge Dana Simonds disagreed, citing Colombano’s cannabis consumption and stress as contributing factors, and referenced mental health issues in sentencing him to probation, and allowing for his release from custody.

District Attorney Rodriguez stated, “Justice was not served in this case. The victim was walking her dog on a public street in Sonoma County and minding her own business when Mr. Colombano viciously attacked her while her 13-year old daughter and niece looked on. He sexually assaulted the victim and then beat her in the face with a rock to the point of hospitalization and permanent disfigurement. This woman will be permanently scarred for the rest of her life, both physically and emotionally.  Her daughter and niece’s sense of safety and well-being will never be the same. Mr. Colombano is a menace to public safety, period, and should be sitting in prison. That won’t happen. As there is no further action legally allowable for our office, the community, and more importantly, the victims will have to live with the consequences of this sentence. I am incredibly disappointed in the outcome of this case.”

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