Stanford professor who vanished on hike ahead of domestic violence court date is found

Hunter Fraser, 44, was located in Washington state’s Olympic National Park on Saturday, a day after his scheduled appearance in a California court

Fraser, 44, was facing a domestic violence criminal case, for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend last year

The Stanford University biology professor described as an “extremely skilled solo hiker”, was reported missing by his family on June 7, after failing to return from a two-day hike, as planned

Park officials said they were notified that Fraser had been found on Saturday, adding that he “self-rescued via the Dosewallips River Trail with the assistance of other hikers”

Fraser is due back in court on June 28 for another hearing in the case

Domestic abuse suspect Hunter Fraser, [photo], was located in Washington state’s Olympic National Park on Saturday — two days after being reported missing by his family

A California professor who went missing for several days on a 40-mile hike ahead of a scheduled domestic violence court hearing was “self-rescued” with help from fellow hikers over the weekend, officials said.
Hunter Fraser, 44, was located in Washington state’s Olympic National Park on Saturday — a day after he was slated to appear in a Santa Monica court over allegations he assaulted his girlfriend last year.
Fraser, a professor of biology at Stanford University, had been reported missing by his family last Wednesday after he failed to return, as planned, from the two-day hike, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said.
Fraser was initially charged with a misdemeanor following his arrest last September, but the charges were raised to a felony when the District Attorney’s office obtained evidence of the woman’s injuries.
On June 5, he embarked on a 2-day, 40-mile hiking trip in Washington’s Olympic National Par.
A post from the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, said they were notified of an overdue hiker on June 7.

Officials at Washington state’s Olympic National Park said they were notified Saturday that Fraser, whom they earlier described as an “extremely skilled solo hiker”, had been found. He’d been missing for two days, coinciding with his scheduled court appearance

Clallam County authorities launched a widespread, multi-day search involving about 90 rescue personnel after Fraser’s family said they’d last heard from him via text on Tuesday morning and his car was located at the beginning of the trail.
Park officials said they were notified that Fraser on Saturday, whom they earlier described as an “extremely skilled solo hiker”, had been found.
The missing hiker wasn’t found by the search and rescue teams. He reportedly, “self-rescued via the Dosewallips River Trail with the assistance of other hikers,” according to park officials.
“He was driven to Quilcene, WA where his family, park personnel, and medical responders met him,” the officials said.
It wasn’t immediately clear if Fraser injured himself on the hike, or if there was another reason for his delayed return.

Authorities launched a widespread, multi-day search involving about 90 rescue personnel after Fraser was reported missing. In the end he was not found by the search party, but “self-rescued via the Dosewallips River Trail with the assistance of other hikers”

Fraser’s brief disappearance comes as the domestic violence criminal case against him unfolds in the courts.
Fraser was hit with a misdemeanor domestic violence charge after he allegedly threw his girlfriend to the floor and later slammed a door on her chest in July 2022, while she was playing with Fraser’s daughter, the Stanford Daily reported.
The girlfriend allegedly suffered two fractured ribs, according to the police report obtained by the outlet.
Fraser, who had a preliminary hearing scheduled in Santa Clara Superior Court last Friday, has previously denied the allegations leveled against him.
Fraser pled not guilty when he was arraigned on Sept. 2, 2022, on charges of inflicting corporal injury, according to the misdemeanor complaint.
The charge carries a penalty of up to a year in county jail.

The professor’s brief disappearance comes as the domestic violence criminal case against him unfolds.

“While I am prevented from going into details here while the case is pending, I do want you to know that the allegations against me are untrue,” Fraser wrote in an email to his lab.
“At no point in my career or in my personal life has anyone ever made such an accusation or allegation against me before. This has all been incredibly jarring.”
Fraser is due back in court on June 28 for another hearing in the case, court records show.