Stanford professor who failed to return from 40 mile hike ahead of domestic violence court hearing

A Stanford University professor set to face charges for allegedly slamming the door on his girlfriend missed the hearing and has not been seen since beginning a hiking trip in Washington State on Monday.

Hunter Fraser, 44, was taking the 40-mile trek in Olympic National Park at the start of the week and was scheduled to finish it and return to Seattle Wednesday.

His court date in Santa Clara County, California was scheduled for Friday, with Fraser charged for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse. 

Around 6 p.m. local time Wednesday, park rangers told the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office that Fraser was long past due.

His family has not heard from him since a text message on Tuesday morning and hasn’t been seen by anyone since Monday afternoon. 

Hunter Fraser, 44, set to face charges for allegedly slamming the door on his girlfriend missed the hearing and has not been seen since beginning a hiking trip in Washington State on Monday

His car was found in a parking lot within the park’s grounds. County rescue teams have yet to find him.

The professor was described in a statement from the sheriff’s office as an ‘extremely experienced solo hiker’ and was reported to have been good for supplies, bringing a backpack and a tent along with him. 

‘Hunter is an experienced outdoorsman and well supplied,’ Stanford Spokesperson Joy Leighton told the Mercury News. ‘We are hoping for his safe return.’

Fraser’s sister Whitney has posted updates to Facebook twice on Friday, saying that ‘4-5 teams’ were on the ground with search dogs and a helicopter rescue was attempting to find her brother. 

She adds that rescue crews will continue searching through Saturday.  

His criminal case dates back to July 4, 2022, when he had gotten into an argument with his girlfriend of five and a half years at their Stanford apartment while playing a game with his young daughter. 

Fraser is accused of slamming a door into his girlfriend, hitting her chest with the handle. She also claims Fraser threw her to the ground before hitting her with the door.

Fraser was arrested, jailed and charged with a misdemeanor soon after. Prosecutors later refiled the case as a felony. 

Fraser was taking the 40-mile trek in Olympic National Park at the start of the week and was scheduled to finish it and return to Seattle Wednesday

Crews have been searching Olympic National Park since Fraser was declared missing and will continue their search through Saturday

His court date in Santa Clara County, California was scheduled for Friday, with Fraser charged for inflicting corporal injury on a spouse at their California home

The victim suffered fractured ribs from the incident, according to The Stanford Daily. 

The professor did address the accusations in an email to his laboratory after an initial hearing. 

‘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,’ he wrote. 

‘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.’

‘In our current cultural moment, I realize that my words may stir skepticism, but they are the truth,’ he added, asking people to ‘allow the process to be fully completed before reaching any conclusions.’ 

Fraser’s family has not heard from him since a text message on Tuesday morning and hasn’t been seen by anyone since Monday afternoon

Fraser’s criminal case dates back to July 4, 2022, when he had gotten into an argument with his girlfriend of five and a half years at their Stanford apartment while playing a game with his young daughter

Multiple student groups called for Fraser’s removal from campus at the time, though he remained at work, with officials declaring it a ‘personal matter’ according to a post made by a petitioner for Fraser to be sent away. 

The petition also posted three citations for vandalism and trespassing against Fraser in 2022. 

Fraser teaches biology at Stanford and runs the Fraser Laboratory, as well as Bio-X, Stanford’s interdisciplinary biosciences institute; the Maternal & Child Health Research Institute; the Stanford Cancer Institute; and the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute. 

Fraser is 6 feet 4 inches tall with a ‘trim build’ and typically wears eyeglasses, according to the sheriff’s office.