A Des Moines police officer was arrested and charged with attempting to sexually assault a woman in his patrol car early Friday, Des Moines Police Chief Judy Bradshaw said.
Police accused Officer Maynard Richardson, 35, of attacking the 22-year-old woman while he was on duty and in uniform.
Richardson faces charges of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse and non-felonious misconduct in office.
"We began an immediate criminal investigation as soon as the allegations were brought to us," Bradshaw said Friday afternoon. "We partnered with the Polk County attorney's office, who was present throughout the investigation."
Richardson, who is paid $52,166 per year, was placed on paid administrative leave pending completion of an internal review of the case.
Richardson posted $3,000 bond and was released from the Polk County Jail Friday night.
Police said the woman was not physically injured.
Police released few details about the incident. Bradshaw declined to describe the type of contact the officer had with the woman.
She would only say that the incident occurred within the Des Moines city limits and that Richardson had contact with the woman as part of his duties as an officer.
The woman called police to file the complaint at about 6:30 a.m., police said, just as Richardson's patrol shift was ending.
Richardson was detained while authorities looked into the complaint. They eventually arrested him and took him to jail, where he was booked at 5:55 p.m. Friday.
The incident occurred sometime between midnight and 6:30 a.m., said Sgt. Lori Lavorato, a Des Moines police spokeswoman.
The woman is not believed to have been involved in a crime and was not on a supervised ride-along with the officer, Lavorato said.
Police believe Richardson did not know the woman before Friday's incident, Bradshaw said.
Police initially released her age as 19 but later revised it to 22. The reason for the discrepancy was not clear.
Richardson served a two-day suspension for inappropriate comments and conduct in 2009, but Bradshaw declined to offer details, citing the privacy of employee records.
Bradshaw emphasized that Richardson's alleged conduct in the incident Friday should not besmirch the reputation of Des Moines police.
"This is an anomaly," Bradshaw said. "In the 30 plus years I have been with this department, we've never seen anything like this. It's not reflective of the extraordinary police work that are out there working ... for the citizens of Des Moines trying to do the right thing."
Beyond the criminal charges, Richardson will face review by police administrators that could result in his termination from the department. Bradshaw said the department's professional standards team will begin its investigation next week.
Richardson's 2006 application for a military tax credit on his Johnston home states he served in the military from March 1994 to December 2000.
He applied for a marriage license with Heather Kephart in November 2004, according to Polk County records.
Richardson graduated from the Des Moines police academy on July 14, 2008, and joined the state's largest police force in December 2008.
A Polk County court determined Richardson was the father of a child born in February 1997 to another woman.
Richardson was ordered to pay $408 per month in child support in September 2008, shortly before he started with the Des Moines police, Iowa court records show.
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Maynard Richardson. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Maynard Richardson. Sort by date Show all posts
Saturday, February 06, 2010
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Officer Maynard Richardson Arrested for Attempted Sexual Assault
A Des Moines police officer's attempted sexual assault of a woman last week occurred in an industrial area about two miles from where the officer initially met the woman when responding to a call, police said on Monday.
Police said the officer removed none of his clothing, nor was any clothing removed from the woman during the incident.
Officer Maynard Richardson, 35, was arrested Friday on a charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse without causing injury and nonfelonious misconduct.
He is accused of attacking a 22-year-old woman in his patrol car while on duty and in uniform.
Police on Monday responded to requests for more information about the alleged assault and the officer's conduct:
• A recording of the woman's 911 call to police that was placed about 6:40 a.m. Friday was made public. In that call, the woman tearfully reported that she had been assaulted by a police officer. She identified Richardson by name. She said that she had not been injured.
The woman asked to have a female officer sent to her location to file the report and said that she feared her name would be disclosed.
The Des Moines Register does not identify sexual assault victims without their consent.
• Richardson initially responded to a call about a fight at an apartment complex at 1414 E. Ninth St. at 3:10 a.m. Friday, police said. Richardson did not file a police report on the fight, however.
• Through the course of that call, Richardson came in contact with the woman. Police said the woman entered the officer's patrol car, but was not under arrest or placed in handcuffs. Police said that Richardson did not know the victim.
• The alleged assault came between 3:10 and 5 a.m. Friday near 1800 E. Euclid Ave. The area is warehouse district, west of the Interstate Highway 235 and Euclid interchange.
Criminal charges were filed Monday in Polk County District Court accusing Richardson, a patrolman since December 2008, of the two charges. His initial court appearance was set for 1 p.m. on Feb. 15.
The attempted sexual abuse charge is an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison.
The misconduct charge is a serious misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.
On Monday, Police Capt. Randy Dawson and Sgt. Lori Lavorato, the department's spokeswoman, declined to provide much more detail, saying that an internal investigation was continuing.
Police declined Monday to release a supplemental report to the initial report filed last week by police, even though police commonly provide a narrative outlining the circumstances of alleged crimes.
That narrative, among other things, could answer more specifically why the woman got in the patrol car, why police were called to the East Ninth Street location and what other people were involved in the initial incident.
"We are not going to get into what actions he took and what actions she took," Dawson said.
But Lavorato said that police investigators believe that what happened "was not consensual."
"We believe he forced himself on her," Lavorato said.
Asked for specifics about what Richardson is accused of doing, the officers said only that his verbal and physical actions brought investigators to the charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.
Robert Rigg, director of the Drake University Criminal Defense Clinic, said the elements necessary for proving assault with intent to commit sexual abuse do not require a physical act, though that can be the case.
"This kind of charge is valid when there is an act that is taken to cause pain or injury or which is intended to result in physical contact that would be insulting or offensive coupled with the ability to do so," Rigg said.
As a result, Rigg said that any person who would touch a person or intended to touch a person in an insulting or offensive manner would be considered to have committed an assault.
Richardson, who is paid $52,166 a year, was placed on paid administrative leave pending the completion of the department's internal investigation.
Police on Friday announced Richardson's arrest. Police Chief Judy Bradshaw said the charges against Richardson should not be considered to tarnish the department's reputation in the community.
Police said the officer removed none of his clothing, nor was any clothing removed from the woman during the incident.
Officer Maynard Richardson, 35, was arrested Friday on a charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse without causing injury and nonfelonious misconduct.
He is accused of attacking a 22-year-old woman in his patrol car while on duty and in uniform.
Police on Monday responded to requests for more information about the alleged assault and the officer's conduct:
• A recording of the woman's 911 call to police that was placed about 6:40 a.m. Friday was made public. In that call, the woman tearfully reported that she had been assaulted by a police officer. She identified Richardson by name. She said that she had not been injured.
The woman asked to have a female officer sent to her location to file the report and said that she feared her name would be disclosed.
The Des Moines Register does not identify sexual assault victims without their consent.
• Richardson initially responded to a call about a fight at an apartment complex at 1414 E. Ninth St. at 3:10 a.m. Friday, police said. Richardson did not file a police report on the fight, however.
• Through the course of that call, Richardson came in contact with the woman. Police said the woman entered the officer's patrol car, but was not under arrest or placed in handcuffs. Police said that Richardson did not know the victim.
• The alleged assault came between 3:10 and 5 a.m. Friday near 1800 E. Euclid Ave. The area is warehouse district, west of the Interstate Highway 235 and Euclid interchange.
Criminal charges were filed Monday in Polk County District Court accusing Richardson, a patrolman since December 2008, of the two charges. His initial court appearance was set for 1 p.m. on Feb. 15.
The attempted sexual abuse charge is an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison.
The misconduct charge is a serious misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail.
On Monday, Police Capt. Randy Dawson and Sgt. Lori Lavorato, the department's spokeswoman, declined to provide much more detail, saying that an internal investigation was continuing.
Police declined Monday to release a supplemental report to the initial report filed last week by police, even though police commonly provide a narrative outlining the circumstances of alleged crimes.
That narrative, among other things, could answer more specifically why the woman got in the patrol car, why police were called to the East Ninth Street location and what other people were involved in the initial incident.
"We are not going to get into what actions he took and what actions she took," Dawson said.
But Lavorato said that police investigators believe that what happened "was not consensual."
"We believe he forced himself on her," Lavorato said.
Asked for specifics about what Richardson is accused of doing, the officers said only that his verbal and physical actions brought investigators to the charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.
Robert Rigg, director of the Drake University Criminal Defense Clinic, said the elements necessary for proving assault with intent to commit sexual abuse do not require a physical act, though that can be the case.
"This kind of charge is valid when there is an act that is taken to cause pain or injury or which is intended to result in physical contact that would be insulting or offensive coupled with the ability to do so," Rigg said.
As a result, Rigg said that any person who would touch a person or intended to touch a person in an insulting or offensive manner would be considered to have committed an assault.
Richardson, who is paid $52,166 a year, was placed on paid administrative leave pending the completion of the department's internal investigation.
Police on Friday announced Richardson's arrest. Police Chief Judy Bradshaw said the charges against Richardson should not be considered to tarnish the department's reputation in the community.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Officer Maynard Richardson Fired
Des Moines Police Chief Judy Bradshaw says the department has fired an officer charged with attempting to sexually assault a woman in his patrol car earlier this month.
Officer Maynard Richardson faces criminal charges of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse and non-felonious misconduct in office after an incident early Feb. 5.
Police accuse Richardson of placing a 22-year-old woman in his squad car and kissing and touching her without her permission.
In announcing Richardson's firing Wednesday, Bradshaw noted that he had previously been suspended for two days for making an inappropriate comment to a women while on a call in 2009.
The 35-yerar-old Richardson can appeal his termination to Des Moines Civil Service commission. Richardson's attorney, Alfredo Parrish, could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.
Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com
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Officer Maynard Richardson faces criminal charges of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse and non-felonious misconduct in office after an incident early Feb. 5.
Police accuse Richardson of placing a 22-year-old woman in his squad car and kissing and touching her without her permission.
In announcing Richardson's firing Wednesday, Bradshaw noted that he had previously been suspended for two days for making an inappropriate comment to a women while on a call in 2009.
The 35-yerar-old Richardson can appeal his termination to Des Moines Civil Service commission. Richardson's attorney, Alfredo Parrish, could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.
Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com
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