Professional climber Charles Barrett receives life sentence for multiple sexual assaults

Charles Barrett, a 40-year-old climber convicted of sexual abuse, was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday.

According to a press release, the longtime Yosemite climber was convicted of two counts of aggravated sexual abuse and one count of abusive sexual contact. All three incidents occurred in Yosemite National Park in 2016, said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert.

“Barrett’s long history of sexual violence justifies the imposition of a life sentence,” Talbert said in the press release. “He used his status as a prominent climber to attack women in the climbing community, and when his victims began to speak out, Barrett responded by publicly responding with threats and intimidation. This case is a testament to the courage of the victims who reported these crimes.”

Barrett committed the crimes in August 2016 when the victim was in Yosemite for a hiking weekend, court documents state. Barrett, who lived in the park and worked for a private company, sexually assaulted her three times over the course of the weekend.

During the trial, three other women testified that Barrett had also sexually assaulted them, Talbert said Tuesday. Those assaults were not included in the charges against Barrett because they occurred outside the federal jurisdiction. However, they were admitted as additional evidence at the trial.

“It’s time to end Barrett’s reign of terror for good,” one of his victims said, according to The Sacramento Bee.

A lack of remorse

It was not until several years after that weekend in 2016 that charges were brought against Barrett.

In 2017, he “intentionally” climbed at the same climbing gym as a victim he had attacked in 2000, prosecutors said. That woman told the gym owner about Barrett’s attack, after which Barrett harassed and threatened her for several years. In August 2022, he was convicted of the criminal threats he made in January 2022.

That same month, federal prosecutors charged him with sexual abuse, beginning a two-year trial that ended today with a life sentence for Barrett.

While in custody in the case, Barrett made hundreds of phone calls, prosecutors said. During those calls, he showed “no remorse or regret,” Talbert said in the press release. Instead, Barrett threatened the victims with violence and lawsuits, claiming they were plotting to ruin his life.

This case was the result of an investigation by the National Park Service.

“We are grateful for the tireless work of the National Park Service investigative team and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in bringing this case to trial,” said Cicely Muldoon, Yosemite National Park Superintendent. “Today’s verdict sends a clear message about the consequences of this criminal conduct. It makes Yosemite a safer place for the climbing community, park visitors and our employees.”

Barrett’s conviction came just days after The New York Times reported on allegations of sexual harassment by Nims Purja, one of the world’s most famous mountaineers. The article also included other notable examples of sexual misconduct in mountaineering – including Barrett.