Menifee man faces trial for alleged sex crimes with minors

By Doug Spoon, Editor

A Menifee man who has been incarcerated since he was arrested and charged in 2018 with multiple sexual offenses involving two juvenile males faces a trial date Sept. 17.

David Everett Leibowitz, 47, is a previous sex offender who was convicted in 2004 of lewd and lascivious acts with a minor, according to the District Attorney’s Office. He faces 13 felony counts including sodomy, oral copulation, lewd acts, and engaging in commercial sex acts with two juveniles age 14 or older. The acts allegedly occurred between 2014 and 2018.

The case was filed in 2018. The Public Defender's Office declared a conflict, so the court appointed an attorney with the conflict panel to represent the defendant, according to John Hall of the District Attorney's Office. In January 2019, Leibowitz requested to represent himself, and his request was granted. Numerous court hearings followed, including motions made by the defendant that were litigated. Eventually, a public defender was again appointed to represent Leibowitz, but various trial dates were postponed because of the unavailability of some of the participants. Leibowitz's attorney has been in trial for the past eight months. 

Leibowitz, shown here in a booking mug from 2018, was assigned “no bail” at the time of his arrest that year. He is currently housed in the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta, according to jail records. His trial will take place at the Riverside Hall of Justice.

Leibowitz faces a possible life sentence, Hall said.