1947–1963 In 1947, Hatcher was convicted of
auto theft in St.Joseph after stealing a logging truck from Iowa–Missouri Walnut Company, his employer of two weeks. He received a two‑year suspended sentence. In 1948, he was convicted of auto theft a second time for stealing a 1937
Buick in St.Joseph. Hatcher was sentenced to two years in the Missouri State Penitentiary. He had been repeatedly stabbed in the back. Hatcher was the only individual missing from the kitchen crew at the time of the murder. He was sent to
solitary confinement for Tharrington's murder, but there was not enough
evidence to convict him in court. While in solitary confinement for the murder, Hatcher wrote a note claiming that he needed
psychiatric treatment; however, the prison
psychologist felt that it was simply a scheme to get out of solitary and possibly out of prison early. Treatment was refused, and Hatcher was returned to the general population. His sentence was reduced to three‑quarters the original time, and he was released on August 24, 1963.
1969–1977 Hatcher confessed to abducting a 12‑year‑old named William Freeman in
Antioch, California, on August 27, 1969. He claimed he had told the boy to come with him, took him to a creek, and strangled him. On August 29, 1969, six‑year‑old Gilbert Martinez was reported missing in
San Francisco. According to the six‑year‑old girl with whom he was playing, Martinez walked away with a man who offered him ice cream. He was found by a man walking his dog as the boy was being beaten and
sexually assaulted. Police arrived and arrested the assailant, who identified himself as Albert Ralph Price, although he carried identification with the name Hobert Prater. Martinez survived the assault, and
Federal Bureau of Investigation records later identified the man as Charles R. Hatcher. Still going by the name Albert Price, Hatcher was charged with assault with attempt to commit
sodomy and
kidnapping. He was ordered to undergo
competency evaluations to determine his competence to stand trial. A complete
psychological evaluation was ordered when Hatcher was unresponsive during the preliminary evaluations. During this time, he claimed to hear voices, and faked
delusions and
suicide attempts to avoid prison. In December 1970, Hatcher was sent back and forth between the courts and hospital multiple times. One psychiatrist diagnosed him as having a
passive–aggressive personality with
paraphilia and
pedophilia. It was reported that the hospital staff felt Hatcher was fabricating or exaggerating the symptoms of his
mental disorders. He was examined by two psychiatrists in January 1971. He was declared
insane by the first one, who recommended vigorous treatment in a secure hospital. The second psychiatrist declared him to be incompetent to stand trial and sent him back to the hospital. On May 24, 1971, Hatcher was sent to trial and pleaded
not guilty by reason of insanity. He was sent to a different hospital for more evaluations, where it was determined that he was unfit to stand trial. On June 2, Hatcher escaped from the hospital. He was caught a week later in
Colusa, California, and arrested for suspected auto theft under the name Richard Lee Grady. Hatcher was returned to the California State Hospital for a mental evaluation. In April 1972, hospital staff determined that his treatment was unsuccessful and that he was a danger to other patients, after which he was sent to the prison state hospital in
Vacaville. In August 1972, Hatcher was transferred to
San Quentin State Prison to stand trial, three years after the crime. He was ordered to undergo two final examinations: one declared him competent to stand trial and the other determined him to be sane at the time of the crime. In December 1972, Hatcher was tried for, and convicted of the abduction and
molestation of Martinez. In January 1972, he was committed to the California State Hospital as a "mentally disordered
sexual offender". On March 28, 1973, security guards found Hatcher hiding in a cooler near the hospital's main courtyard with two sheets stuffed into his pants, after which he admitted to an escape attempt. He was sent back to court for sentencing after doctors determined he was still a threat to society. In April, Hatcher was sentenced to one year to
life and sent to a
medium‑security prison in Vacaville. In May 1973, a psychologist found Hatcher to be a "manipulative institutionalized
sociopath". In June 1973, he attempted suicide by slashing his wrists after it was recommended that he be transferred to a maximum security prison. A psychiatrist diagnosed him with
paranoid schizophrenia, and he remained at Vacaville. In August 1975, guards reported good behavior at Hatcher's
parole review. In June 1976, the California Parole Board found that Hatcher had improved dramatically through his time in prison and set a parole date of December 25, 1978. As a result of the passage of a bill giving inmates credit for time spent in jails and mental hospitals, Hatcher received a modified parole date in January 1977. He was released to a
halfway house in San Francisco on May 20, 1977.
1978–1982 On September 4, 1978, Hatcher was arrested under the name Richard Clark in
Omaha, Nebraska, for sexually assaulting a 16‑year‑old boy. He was sent to the Douglas County Mental Hospital and released in January 1979. On May 3, 1979, Hatcher was arrested for assault and
attempted murder after he tried to stab seven‑year‑old Thomas Morton. He was sent to Norfolk Regional Center, a mental health facility, after the charges were dropped. In May 1980, Hatcher was released from the facility, but was sent back two months later for another assault. He escaped in September. On October 9, 1980, Hatcher was arrested as Richard Clark in
Lincoln, Nebraska, for the attempted assault and sodomy of a 17‑year‑old boy. He was sent to another mental health facility and released after 21 days. On January 13, 1981, Hatcher was arrested as Richard Clark in
Des Moines, Iowa, after a knife fight. He spent time in several mental health facilities and was released to a
Davenport Salvation Army shelter in April. ==Melvin Reynolds==