Andrew Stuart Luster

A preliminary hearing for rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster has been postponed for a second time. Prosecutors were scheduled to launch their drug and sexual-assault case against Luster on Monday, but defense attorneys asked for a postponement until Jan. 17. It was the second two-month delay sought by the defense. Ventura County prosecutors did not oppose it.

After months of delay, the great-grandson of cosmetics king Max Factor is scheduled to appear in court today to hear evidence prosecutors say proves he is a rapist who used a date rape drug to render his victims unconscious before videotaping his attacks. Andrew Stuart Luster, 37, is charged with 88 counts of rape, sodomy, oral copulation, poisoning and sexual battery; 38 of those counts were recently added.

A Mussel Shoals man suspected of drugging and raping a 21-year-old Santa Barbara woman last weekend may also have raped at least one county resident, the Sheriff's Department said Friday.

A preliminary hearing for rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster has been postponed for a second time. Prosecutors were scheduled to launch their drug and sexual-assault case against Luster on Monday, but defense attorneys asked for a postponement until Jan. 17. It was the second two-month delay sought by the defense. Ventura County prosecutors did not oppose it.

Although experts say the prevalence of date-rape drugs is soaring, local authorities say they have not prosecuted anyone for such a crime in the last year and a half because the charge is so difficult to prove. Deputy Dist. Atty. Dee Corona, head of the sex crimes unit, said she has reviewed more than 100 rape cases since the start of 1999, the only statistics immediately available, and at least half a dozen involved victims who claimed that they were drugged.

Andrew Stuart Luster, suspected of multiple rapes, was held on $10-million bail Wednesday after prosecutors filed 19 new charges and told a judge they have evidence the wealthy scion of cosmetics magnate Max Factor has left victims around the globe. Luster, a 36-year-old Mussel Shoals resident, now faces 40 criminal charges in connection with three alleged rapes in which authorities say the victims were sedated with a date-rape drug and videotaped.

Rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster was held on $10-million bail Wednesday after prosecutors filed 19 new charges and told a judge they have evidence the wealthy scion of cosmetics magnate Max Factor has left victims around the globe. Luster, a 36-year-old Mussel Shoals resident, now faces 40 criminal charges in connection with three alleged rapes in which authorities say the victims were sedated with a date-rape drug and videotaped.

Rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 40 criminal charges stemming from alleged attacks on three women, with his attorney saying the videotaped sexual encounters between Luster and the apparently unconscious women were consensual. "Prosecutors are going to have more than a few problems proving this was rape," lawyer Joel Isaacson said. "Every encounter, every photo, every video was taken with the consent of the women."

A woman who dated rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster several years ago said she only learned this week that she may be a victim when authorities played a videotape of Luster allegedly assaulting her as she lay unconscious in his beach home. "I just had no idea I was a victim," said the woman, whose identity is being withheld because she is an alleged sex crime victim. "I'm completely blown away by this.

After months of delay, the great-grandson of cosmetics king Max Factor is scheduled to appear in court today to hear evidence prosecutors say proves he is a rapist who used a date rape drug to render his victims unconscious before videotaping his attacks. Andrew Stuart Luster, 37, is charged with 88 counts of rape, sodomy, oral copulation, poisoning and sexual battery; 38 of those counts were recently added.

Rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 40 criminal charges stemming from alleged attacks on three women, with his attorney saying the videotaped sexual encounters between Luster and the apparently unconscious women were consensual. "Prosecutors are going to have more than a few problems proving this was rape," lawyer Joel Isaacson said. "Every encounter, every photo, every video was taken with the consent of the women."

Although experts say the prevalence of date-rape drugs is soaring, local authorities say they have not prosecuted anyone for such a crime in the last year and a half because the charge is so difficult to prove. Deputy Dist. Atty. Dee Corona, head of the sex crimes unit, said she has reviewed more than 100 rape cases since the start of 1999, the only statistics immediately available, and at least half a dozen involved victims who claimed that they were drugged.

A woman who dated rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster several years ago said she only learned this week that she may be a victim when authorities played a videotape of Luster allegedly assaulting her as she lay unconscious in his beach home. "I just had no idea I was a victim," said the woman, whose identity is being withheld because she is an alleged sex crime victim. "I'm completely blown away by this.

Andrew Stuart Luster, suspected of multiple rapes, was held on $10-million bail Wednesday after prosecutors filed 19 new charges and told a judge they have evidence the wealthy scion of cosmetics magnate Max Factor has left victims around the globe. Luster, a 36-year-old Mussel Shoals resident, now faces 40 criminal charges in connection with three alleged rapes in which authorities say the victims were sedated with a date-rape drug and videotaped.

Rape suspect Andrew Stuart Luster was held on $10-million bail Wednesday after prosecutors filed 19 new charges and told a judge they have evidence the wealthy scion of cosmetics magnate Max Factor has left victims around the globe. Luster, a 36-year-old Mussel Shoals resident, now faces 40 criminal charges in connection with three alleged rapes in which authorities say the victims were sedated with a date-rape drug and videotaped.

A Mussel Shoals man suspected of drugging and raping a 21-year-old Santa Barbara woman last weekend may also have raped at least one county resident, the Sheriff's Department said Friday.