Post by WaTcHeR on Mar 2, 2007 11:51:14 GMT -5
Officer Jesus Sanchez
ELYRIA, Ohio -- A Lorain police officer who accused colleagues of sexually intimidating and harassing female residents has surrendered on charges accusing him of stalking a woman he met on duty.
Patrolman Jesus Sanchez, a 28-year police veteran, was indicted on two felony charges of menacing by stalking and turned himself in Thursday.
Sanchez was placed on paid leave by the department and could spend more than four years in prison if convicted. He was released from the Lorain County jail on a $10,000 personal bond, sheriff's Sgt. Dominic Manacci said Friday.
Police in Elyria and the sheriff's office have conducted separate criminal investigations into claims of sexual misconduct by police officers in Lorain, west of Cleveland.
Both investigations stem from allegations Sanchez made in a federal lawsuit filed in 2003 by Lorain resident Sarah Long. Sanchez claimed in an affidavit that other officers had lured women to have sex with them and had stalked women.
Sanchez agreed to testify against the department as part of a settlement with Long, who accused the officer of groping her and forcibly kissing her in 2001 and 2002, making threatening calls and pulling her over for no reason.
Police Chief Cel Rivera said he learned of the depositions last July and asked Elyria police to investigate. That investigation led to the charges against Sanchez, The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reported Friday.
Rivera said Thursday that he will act soon on the findings of the investigation conducted by the sheriff's office.
Michael Duff, Long's attorney, accused officials in Lorain of using Sanchez as a scapegoat for the actions of other officers.
www.myfoxcleveland.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=2548179&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1