A veteran sheriff's detective was convicted Monday of picking up a prostitute and assaulting her in a Mission Valley parking lot, but he was acquitted of sexually assaulting the woman.
Thomas John Sadler, 49, was convicted of felony assault and battery by a peace officer, along with misdemeanor assault and false imprisonment. He could receive a sentence ranging from probation on the low end to three years in prison on April 14.
The defendant -- on unpaid administrative leave from the sheriff's department -- was acquitted of felony charges of sexual battery by restraint, sexual battery and false imprisonment.
Two charges of accessing a computer to defraud were dismissed by the judge before the case went to the jury.
Sadler stared straight ahead as a courtroom clerk read the verdicts. The 20-year veteran was immediately ordered into custody by Judge Michael Smyth.
Jurors, who did not want to be interviewed, deliberated about two full days before reaching their decision.
"I'm pleased, largely, with the verdict, because originally Mr. Sadler had been charged with five felony counts. He was convicted of only one," said defense attorney Mary Ellen Attridge, the senior supervising attorney for the Office of the Alternate Public Defender.
"I would have preferred, of course, that he be completely exonerated of all, but I think being found not guilty of four out of five is pretty good," she said.
Attridge said Sadler's sentencing range is better now than with a plea bargain offered by prosecutors. She said Sadler will not have to register for life as a sex offender.
"He was found not guilty of anything sexually oriented in any way, and so I think that overall it is an acceptable verdict, although I would have preferred he'd been found not guilty of everything," Attridge told reporters outside court.
Deputy District Attorney Jeffrey Dort said in his closing argument that Sadler had a plan to sexually assault the prostitute during a search for drugs but ran into a problem when he didn't find any.
Sadler assaulted the prostitute just as he had sexually assaulted four other women during searches dating back to 2001, the prosecutor told jurors.
But Attridge said the prostitute got into Sadler's unmarked car on El Cajon Boulevard on her own about 11 a.m. on Feb. 6, 2008.
"When she smiled and he smiled back, she thought of money," Attridge said.
Sadler, "like a fool," drove to a Mission Valley parking lot but changed his mind about having sex with the prostitute, Attridge said.
"He thought, 'What in God's name am I doing?'" his attorney said.
Sadler testified that he thought of his wife of 22 years and didn't want to go through with his original plan.
But Dort told the jury that Sadler had a history of pulling over women, searching them for drugs with no one around and touching them inappropriately.
The prosecutor told the jury the defendant was "a rogue cop" who thought he was above the law. Sadler planned to search the prostitute and sexually assault her "because he had gotten away with it before," Dort said.
Attridge said the prosecution was relying on "unreliable" drug addicts, felons and prostitutes to convict a veteran deputy sheriff for something that "did not occur."
The attorney said Sadler admitted to making very poor choices but did not sexually assault the prostitute, who was on probation at the time.
Attridge said the prostitute became irritated when Sadler showed his badge and ordered her out of the car in the Mission Valley parking lot.
Sadler took the woman's cell phone away when she tried to take a picture of his license plate, Attridge said.
"This was a business deal gone bad by a foolish middle-age man and a very sad young woman with a very dicey job," Attridge told the jury.
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Monday, March 01, 2010
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Ex-Detective Thomas Sadler Preparing for Trial
A former Sheriff's deputy is preparing for his trial on charges of sexually assaulting a prostitute.
Ex-detective Thomas Sadler was expected by many to enter a plea Monday, but instead he told 10News he would take his chances with a jury.
Sadler, a 23-year veteran of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, has been on administrative leave without pay following his arrest last July.
He was charged with five felonies stemming from an incident in February 2008 in which he was accused of forcing a prostitute into his unmarked department vehicle and then forcefully fondling her.
Sadler said he is ready to go to trial and tell his side of the story.
"I feel that I'm innocent in this case. I believe a lot of this is because I do work in law enforcement and they were overzealous in their prosecution. I want my day in court, I want to get my side out there. I believe a jury will hear the case openly and honestly and make a decision based on what they believe is the truth," said Sadler.
The jury will hear Sadler's side of the story when the case goes to trial on July 23.
If convicted, he could serve 8 years in prison.
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Previous Post: http://whathappenedtoprotectandserve.blogspot.com/2008/08/deputy-accused-of-sexual-assault.html
http://whathappenedtoprotectandserve.blogspot.com/2008/08/arraignment-for-officer-accused-of.html
http://whathappenedtoprotectandserve.blogspot.com/2008/08/detective-fondles-prostitute-while-on.html
Monday, August 04, 2008
DetectiveThomas Sadler Accused of Fondling Prostitute While on Duty
A sheriff's detective who is accused of forcibly fondling a prostitute while on duty was named in 2003 lawsuit alleging similar behavior with a woman he pulled over in Santee, according to court records.
Thomas J. Sadler, 47, a 20-year veteran of the county Sheriff's Department, was arrested by San Diego sex-crimes detectives Thursday afternoon at the Santee home he shares with his wife.
“Obviously, it's very disturbing to all law enforcement,” San Diego police acting Assistant Chief Jim Collins said in a news conference yesterday. “Especially when he's on duty with his police car and showing his badge and weapon.”
El Cajon attorney Eric Hart, who represented the woman in 2003, said he's upset that Sadler remained on the street after the sexual-battery lawsuit five years ago. The case was settled out of court in 2004, and the terms are confidential.
“We spent a lot of time with internal affairs before we filed the lawsuit,” Hart said yesterday. “Our only goal was to see justice served, and they completely blew us off. We suspected someone else would be a victim.”
Undersheriff Bill Gore said yesterday that he could not discuss prior personnel issues and had not reviewed the lawsuit, which named Sadler and the county.
In the most recent case, Sadler, who is assigned to the Lemon Grove station, was on duty and driving his assigned, unmarked Ford Taurus at 10:30 a.m. Feb. 6 when he pulled up alongside a prostitute sitting on a bus bench on El Cajon Boulevard in North Park, according to an arrest warrant.
He identified himself as a “sheriff's officer” and ordered the woman to get into his car. He drove her to Camino Del Rio South in Mission Valley, next to Dave & Buster's restaurant, and parked. Police said he fondled the woman's genitals, then pulled up her bra and groped her breasts.
At least three witnesses saw the incident and called 911 to report a kidnapping in progress, Collins said.
When the woman was finally released, she tried to take a picture of the car's license plate, but Sadler took the phone and disabled it, according to the arrest warrant.
The woman called San Diego police six days later to say she had spotted Sadler and had written down the plate number of his car.
Police went to the Lemon Grove station to question him, but he refused to give a statement, the warrant said.
The next day, the woman and two witnesses identified Sadler in a photo lineup.
Sadler was charged Thursday with sexual battery by restraint, assault and battery by an officer and false imprisonment. He was released on $250,000 bail.
Collins said part of the reason the investigation took so long was because Sadler was a peace officer. “Obviously, when a law enforcement officer is involved, we make sure we have pretty good information to make the charges,” he said.
Sadler has been placed on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.
An arraignment is scheduled for Thursday in San Diego Superior Court.
“We're all saddened,” Gore said. “But we take it very seriously because of the need to have the public's confidence.”
Nicole Bowman, 34, said yesterday that the incident was eerily similar to an encounter she had with Sadler in 2002.
In a federal lawsuit, she claimed Sadler pulled her over in a dark Vons parking lot on Mission Gorge Road after she left a Santee bar about 11:30 p.m. June 29, 2002
She had not been drinking, Bowman said, but only stopped at the bar to take care of details for her birthday party to be held there the following day.
Sadler found a friend's methamphetamine pipe in her car and then said he'd have to search her. He put her in the patrol car and drove deeper into the parking lot behind some bushes, the lawsuit states.
Outside the vehicle, he pulled up her halter top and bra, exposing her breasts, and shined his flashlight on her chest, the lawsuit said. Having been told that Bowman wasn't wearing underwear, he then pulled out her waistband and shined the flashlight down the front and back of her pants, according to the lawsuit.
The incident ended, Bowman said, when he drove her back to her car and wished her a happy birthday.
“I was shaking,” Bowman recalled. “I didn't understand what his intent was.”
Sadler denied the allegations in court records.
Bowman filed a complaint with the sheriff's internal affairs investigators, where it became her word against his.
“How do I report a cop to a cop and expect anything other than what I got out of it? They thumbed their nose at me,” Bowman said.
Thomas J. Sadler, 47, a 20-year veteran of the county Sheriff's Department, was arrested by San Diego sex-crimes detectives Thursday afternoon at the Santee home he shares with his wife.
“Obviously, it's very disturbing to all law enforcement,” San Diego police acting Assistant Chief Jim Collins said in a news conference yesterday. “Especially when he's on duty with his police car and showing his badge and weapon.”
El Cajon attorney Eric Hart, who represented the woman in 2003, said he's upset that Sadler remained on the street after the sexual-battery lawsuit five years ago. The case was settled out of court in 2004, and the terms are confidential.
“We spent a lot of time with internal affairs before we filed the lawsuit,” Hart said yesterday. “Our only goal was to see justice served, and they completely blew us off. We suspected someone else would be a victim.”
Undersheriff Bill Gore said yesterday that he could not discuss prior personnel issues and had not reviewed the lawsuit, which named Sadler and the county.
In the most recent case, Sadler, who is assigned to the Lemon Grove station, was on duty and driving his assigned, unmarked Ford Taurus at 10:30 a.m. Feb. 6 when he pulled up alongside a prostitute sitting on a bus bench on El Cajon Boulevard in North Park, according to an arrest warrant.
He identified himself as a “sheriff's officer” and ordered the woman to get into his car. He drove her to Camino Del Rio South in Mission Valley, next to Dave & Buster's restaurant, and parked. Police said he fondled the woman's genitals, then pulled up her bra and groped her breasts.
At least three witnesses saw the incident and called 911 to report a kidnapping in progress, Collins said.
When the woman was finally released, she tried to take a picture of the car's license plate, but Sadler took the phone and disabled it, according to the arrest warrant.
The woman called San Diego police six days later to say she had spotted Sadler and had written down the plate number of his car.
Police went to the Lemon Grove station to question him, but he refused to give a statement, the warrant said.
The next day, the woman and two witnesses identified Sadler in a photo lineup.
Sadler was charged Thursday with sexual battery by restraint, assault and battery by an officer and false imprisonment. He was released on $250,000 bail.
Collins said part of the reason the investigation took so long was because Sadler was a peace officer. “Obviously, when a law enforcement officer is involved, we make sure we have pretty good information to make the charges,” he said.
Sadler has been placed on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.
An arraignment is scheduled for Thursday in San Diego Superior Court.
“We're all saddened,” Gore said. “But we take it very seriously because of the need to have the public's confidence.”
Nicole Bowman, 34, said yesterday that the incident was eerily similar to an encounter she had with Sadler in 2002.
In a federal lawsuit, she claimed Sadler pulled her over in a dark Vons parking lot on Mission Gorge Road after she left a Santee bar about 11:30 p.m. June 29, 2002
She had not been drinking, Bowman said, but only stopped at the bar to take care of details for her birthday party to be held there the following day.
Sadler found a friend's methamphetamine pipe in her car and then said he'd have to search her. He put her in the patrol car and drove deeper into the parking lot behind some bushes, the lawsuit states.
Outside the vehicle, he pulled up her halter top and bra, exposing her breasts, and shined his flashlight on her chest, the lawsuit said. Having been told that Bowman wasn't wearing underwear, he then pulled out her waistband and shined the flashlight down the front and back of her pants, according to the lawsuit.
The incident ended, Bowman said, when he drove her back to her car and wished her a happy birthday.
“I was shaking,” Bowman recalled. “I didn't understand what his intent was.”
Sadler denied the allegations in court records.
Bowman filed a complaint with the sheriff's internal affairs investigators, where it became her word against his.
“How do I report a cop to a cop and expect anything other than what I got out of it? They thumbed their nose at me,” Bowman said.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Arraignment for Officer Accused of Forcibly Fondling Prostitute Postponed
SAN DIEGO
The arraignment for a San Diego County sheriff's detective accused of forcibly fondling a prostitute in February was postponed Thursday because he has not yet hired an attorney. Thomas Sadler, 47, is likely waiting for word from the Deputy Sheriffs' Association, which was voting Thursday afternoon on whether to pay for his defense.
An arraignment has been rescheduled for Aug. 28.
Sadler appeared somber during his appearance in San Diego Superior Court Thursday, nearly one week after attempting to commit suicide following his July 31 arrest.
Deputy District Attorney Jeff Dort requested the judge increase Sadler's bail “due to the defendant planning not to be here today.” But Judge David Szumowski declined, leaving bail at $250,000.
Sadler, accompanied by a woman, remained silent and looked straight ahead as television cameras followed him onto the sidewalk of the courthouse and surrounded him after the proceedings. He eventually gave a slight nod of the head when asked if he was declining to comment.
A 20-year veteran of the department, Sadler is charged with sexual battery by restraint, assault and battery by an officer, false imprisonment, and two counts of accessing a computer to defraud.
He was arrested at the Santee home he shares with his wife after a six-month investigation by San Diego police. He was released from jail early the next morning after posting bail.
San Diego police said Sadler forced a self-admitted prostitute into his unmarked Ford Taurus in North Park while on duty the morning of Feb. 6 and drove her to a parking lot in Mission Valley.
He then forcibly groped her until three witnesses intervened and she escaped, said San Diego police acting Assistant Chief Jim Collins.
Authorities have said the deputy used a confidential computer system hours after the alleged incident to check whether his vehicle license plate was listed as wanted and for information about the location of the incident.
Sadler, who is assigned to the Lemon Grove station, is on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.
He faces up to six years and eight months in prison, if convicted.
According to a federal lawsuit, Sadler was accused of similar behavior while on duty in 2002.
Nicole Bowman, 34, claims he stopped her in a parking lot after leaving a Santee bar, pulled up her bra and looked down her pants during a search.
Bowman said she filed the lawsuit in 2003 only after getting nowhere with sheriff's Internal Affairs investigators. The county agreed to pay her $10,000 to settle the case a year later, according to documents.
The arraignment for a San Diego County sheriff's detective accused of forcibly fondling a prostitute in February was postponed Thursday because he has not yet hired an attorney. Thomas Sadler, 47, is likely waiting for word from the Deputy Sheriffs' Association, which was voting Thursday afternoon on whether to pay for his defense.
An arraignment has been rescheduled for Aug. 28.
Sadler appeared somber during his appearance in San Diego Superior Court Thursday, nearly one week after attempting to commit suicide following his July 31 arrest.
Deputy District Attorney Jeff Dort requested the judge increase Sadler's bail “due to the defendant planning not to be here today.” But Judge David Szumowski declined, leaving bail at $250,000.
Sadler, accompanied by a woman, remained silent and looked straight ahead as television cameras followed him onto the sidewalk of the courthouse and surrounded him after the proceedings. He eventually gave a slight nod of the head when asked if he was declining to comment.
A 20-year veteran of the department, Sadler is charged with sexual battery by restraint, assault and battery by an officer, false imprisonment, and two counts of accessing a computer to defraud.
He was arrested at the Santee home he shares with his wife after a six-month investigation by San Diego police. He was released from jail early the next morning after posting bail.
San Diego police said Sadler forced a self-admitted prostitute into his unmarked Ford Taurus in North Park while on duty the morning of Feb. 6 and drove her to a parking lot in Mission Valley.
He then forcibly groped her until three witnesses intervened and she escaped, said San Diego police acting Assistant Chief Jim Collins.
Authorities have said the deputy used a confidential computer system hours after the alleged incident to check whether his vehicle license plate was listed as wanted and for information about the location of the incident.
Sadler, who is assigned to the Lemon Grove station, is on unpaid leave pending the outcome of the case.
He faces up to six years and eight months in prison, if convicted.
According to a federal lawsuit, Sadler was accused of similar behavior while on duty in 2002.
Nicole Bowman, 34, claims he stopped her in a parking lot after leaving a Santee bar, pulled up her bra and looked down her pants during a search.
Bowman said she filed the lawsuit in 2003 only after getting nowhere with sheriff's Internal Affairs investigators. The county agreed to pay her $10,000 to settle the case a year later, according to documents.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Officer Paul Hubka Charged with Killing His Canine Partner
SAN DIEGO
A San Diego police officer who was charged yesterday in the death of his canine partner is unlikely to lose his job but could face disciplinary action pending an internal investigation, San Diego police Chief William Lansdowne said.
The Police Department launched the investigation yesterday after the District Attorney's Office decided to charge Officer Paul Hubka with one misdemeanor count of animal endangerment. If convicted, he could face up to six months in jail, a fine and be ordered to pay restitution.
A necropsy performed on Forrest, a 5 year-old Belgian Malinois, found that the animal died of heatstroke on June 20 at the officer's home in Alpine.
Hubka, a 22-year veteran of the department, is accused of leaving the dog in the police cruiser with the windows rolled up on a day when temperatures in East County exceeded 100 degrees.
“There's no one who feels worse than he does,” Lansdowne said yesterday. “It's very clear that he lost a partner he was attached to, and he knows it was his fault, and he takes absolute responsibility.”
Michael Conger, an attorney who represented Hubka in an unrelated labor lawsuit but not in this case, said the officer had worked a double shift and was exhausted when he got home.
“He's a very solid, good person that made a very bad mistake,” Conger said.
The chief said he will decide on any discipline to administer in the case when the internal investigation is completed in two to three weeks. Hubka is assigned to administrative duties in the meantime.
“I do not see this as a termination case,” Lansdowne said. “I believe it was a mistake.”
In an effort to prevent similar tragedies in the future, the department announced yesterday that it plans to buy heat-alert systems for its fleet of 53 police dog cars similar to those used in other hot-temperature cities such as Dallas, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
When the back seat of the patrol car reaches a certain temperature, the system will automatically lower the car's windows, switch on the air conditioning and sound an alarm. The technology will cost about $36,000 total.
In 2006, a state law was enacted making it a misdemeanor for a person to leave a dog unattended in a vehicle causing great bodily injury or death. Only intentional animal cruelty is a felony.
Hubka's attorney could not be reached yesterday afternoon.
Carlsbad resident Janis Musante was one of several in the county who expressed outrage at Forrest's death.
“I think he needs to be held accountable and shouldn't be given any preferential treatment because he's a police officer,” said Musante, a retired San Francisco lawyer who is married to a retired police officer. “It was absolutely justified charging him.”
She also applauded City Attorney Michael Aguirre for filing a lawsuit against Hubka seeking to recover the cost of replacing the police dog.
Hubka is the third law enforcement officer in the county to be charged with a crime in the past three weeks.
San Diego police Officer Frank White faces two charges for his role in an off-duty shooting and road rage incident in Oceanside, and San Diego County sheriff's Detective Thomas Sadler faces five felony charges stemming from accusations that he molested a prostitute while on duty.
Sadler and Hubka are set to be arraigned Aug. 28 before the same judge.
Also yesterday, an officer whose police dog died after being left in a patrol car for 13 hours last summer in suburban Phoenix was acquitted of animal cruelty.
Chandler, Ariz., police Sgt. Tom Lovejoy was negligent, but prosecutors did not prove he acted recklessly, a justice of the peace ruled. Lovejoy could have been jailed for six months if he had been convicted of the misdemeanor count.
Lovejoy testified that on the morning of Aug. 11, 2007, after working an overnight shift, he parked his police SUV in his driveway and went inside. He said he was exhausted and forgot the Belgian Malinois was sleeping in the back.
A San Diego police officer who was charged yesterday in the death of his canine partner is unlikely to lose his job but could face disciplinary action pending an internal investigation, San Diego police Chief William Lansdowne said.
The Police Department launched the investigation yesterday after the District Attorney's Office decided to charge Officer Paul Hubka with one misdemeanor count of animal endangerment. If convicted, he could face up to six months in jail, a fine and be ordered to pay restitution.
A necropsy performed on Forrest, a 5 year-old Belgian Malinois, found that the animal died of heatstroke on June 20 at the officer's home in Alpine.
Hubka, a 22-year veteran of the department, is accused of leaving the dog in the police cruiser with the windows rolled up on a day when temperatures in East County exceeded 100 degrees.
“There's no one who feels worse than he does,” Lansdowne said yesterday. “It's very clear that he lost a partner he was attached to, and he knows it was his fault, and he takes absolute responsibility.”
Michael Conger, an attorney who represented Hubka in an unrelated labor lawsuit but not in this case, said the officer had worked a double shift and was exhausted when he got home.
“He's a very solid, good person that made a very bad mistake,” Conger said.
The chief said he will decide on any discipline to administer in the case when the internal investigation is completed in two to three weeks. Hubka is assigned to administrative duties in the meantime.
“I do not see this as a termination case,” Lansdowne said. “I believe it was a mistake.”
In an effort to prevent similar tragedies in the future, the department announced yesterday that it plans to buy heat-alert systems for its fleet of 53 police dog cars similar to those used in other hot-temperature cities such as Dallas, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
When the back seat of the patrol car reaches a certain temperature, the system will automatically lower the car's windows, switch on the air conditioning and sound an alarm. The technology will cost about $36,000 total.
In 2006, a state law was enacted making it a misdemeanor for a person to leave a dog unattended in a vehicle causing great bodily injury or death. Only intentional animal cruelty is a felony.
Hubka's attorney could not be reached yesterday afternoon.
Carlsbad resident Janis Musante was one of several in the county who expressed outrage at Forrest's death.
“I think he needs to be held accountable and shouldn't be given any preferential treatment because he's a police officer,” said Musante, a retired San Francisco lawyer who is married to a retired police officer. “It was absolutely justified charging him.”
She also applauded City Attorney Michael Aguirre for filing a lawsuit against Hubka seeking to recover the cost of replacing the police dog.
Hubka is the third law enforcement officer in the county to be charged with a crime in the past three weeks.
San Diego police Officer Frank White faces two charges for his role in an off-duty shooting and road rage incident in Oceanside, and San Diego County sheriff's Detective Thomas Sadler faces five felony charges stemming from accusations that he molested a prostitute while on duty.
Sadler and Hubka are set to be arraigned Aug. 28 before the same judge.
Also yesterday, an officer whose police dog died after being left in a patrol car for 13 hours last summer in suburban Phoenix was acquitted of animal cruelty.
Chandler, Ariz., police Sgt. Tom Lovejoy was negligent, but prosecutors did not prove he acted recklessly, a justice of the peace ruled. Lovejoy could have been jailed for six months if he had been convicted of the misdemeanor count.
Lovejoy testified that on the morning of Aug. 11, 2007, after working an overnight shift, he parked his police SUV in his driveway and went inside. He said he was exhausted and forgot the Belgian Malinois was sleeping in the back.
Monday, August 04, 2008
Deputy Accused of Sexual Assault Attempts Suicide
A San Diego County sheriff's deputy facing five felony charges for an alleged on-duty sexual assault on a prostitute on El Cajon Boulevard tried to commit suicide according to Sheriff's Department officials.
Authorities say Thomas J. Sadler, 47, was being treated at a hospital following the suicide attempt Friday.
The deputy was arrested at his Santee home Thursday afternoon on five felony charges and released hours later after posting $250,000 bail, authorities said.
Sheriff's officials said he tried to kill himself Friday afternoon, but they declined to provide details.
Sadler, a 20-year veteran of the department who works as a detective out of the Lemon Grove station, was placed on unpaid leave after his arrest.
He is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday on charges that include sexual battery by restraint, assault and battery by an officer, and false imprisonment.
San Diego police said Sadler forced an admitted prostitute into his unmarked Ford Taurus while on duty the morning of Feb. 6 and drove her to a parking lot in Mission Valley.
He then forcibly groped her until three witnesses intervened and she escaped, said San Diego police acting Assistant Chief Jim Collins.
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