July 2024
A roundup of police predators
Welcome to Police Predators, a side project that documents child sexual abuse by law enforcement officers. Every month, I’ll be doing a roundup of all the stories I could find about cops that were charged with, convicted of, and/or sentenced for their crimes against minors.
Christopher Cassidy, a former St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana police officer, pleaded guilty to 78 counts of sexual abuse material involving children and 111 counts of sexual abuse of animals. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison without the possibility of parole, followed by mandatory sex offender registration for 25 years. Cassidy sent and received over 100 files of child sexual abuse materials as well as images that depicted sexual abuse of animals. Original story here.
Shane Dempsey, a New Jersey state trooper, was arrested and charged with second-degree attempted endangering the welfare of a child via permitting the child to engage in the production of child sexual abuse materials, second-degree attempted engaging in prostitution, second-degree attempted luring, second-degree attempted sexual assault, and third-degree attempted endangering the welfare of a child via sexual conduct. Dempsey allegedly offered to pay a person he believed to be a 14-year-old for sex and attempted to solicit sexually explicit photos. The person was actually an undercover detective. Original story here.
Ethan Eversman, a former Eaton County, Michigan corrections officer, was arrested and charged with four counts of aggravated child sexual abusive activity (distributing or promoting), three charges of aggravated child sexual abuse material possession, and seven charges of use of a computer to commit a crime. Eversman was fired following his arrest. Original story here.
Christopher Andrews, a former school resource officer and sheriff's deputy in Logan County, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual communication with a minor using technology. Andrews was in contact with a 17-year-old student over the course of several months and discussed sexual acts. He faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both. Original story here.
Joseph Melendez, a Portland, Texas police officer, was arrested and charged with continuous sexual abuse of a child, aggravated sexual assault of a child, and indecency with a child with sexual contact. Original story here.
Ronald Jackson, a former New Mexico State Police officer, was sentenced to 18 years in prison for criminal sexual penetration of a child. The victimization began when the child was 9 years old and continued for over two years. Jackson was also fired from a previous department for acting inappropriately with a coworker, as well as from a corrections facility for the alleged rape of an inmate. Original story here.
Lloyd Emerson Elk, a former police officer in Idaho, was convicted of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor, abusive sexual contact, and witness tampering. Elk sexually abused a girl from ages five to seven years old. He promised to "kill her and her family" if she reported him. Elk is facing life in prison. Original story here.
Kirk Stanley Grable, a former police officer in Texas, was arrested and charged with sexual assault of a child and prohibited sexual conduct. He owns a security firm that has armed guards in multiple schools. Grable is accused of sexually assaulting a boy on numerous occasions. Original story here.
Rodney Jernigan, a former Reservoir, Mississippi police officer, was arrested and charged with statutory rape. Jernigan allegedly raped a 13-year-old girl. He is currently out on bond. Original story here.
Sinme Asomuyide, a former Kokomo, Indiana police officer, was arrested and charged with sexual misconduct with a minor, sexual battery, child seduction, and official misconduct. Original story here.
Dariel Javier Quiles-Davila, a former Kissimmee, Florida police officer, was arrested and charged with knowingly receiving child sex abuse material. Quiles-Davila allegedly contacted a minor victim after meeting them on duty, paying them for sexually explicit photos. You can read the Department of Justice press release here.
Caleb Ryan Dean, a communications officer in Melbourne, Florida, was arrested and charged with lewd and lascivious molestation, lewd and lascivious touching of certain minors, child abuse, and sexual battery of a minor. Dean is currently on leave without pay and the Melbourne Police Department is initiating termination proceedings against him. Original story here.
Christopher Michael Erickson, a former Bland County, Virginia corrections officer, was arrested and charged with distributing and exhibiting material depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, use of a minor in filming sexually explicit conduct, and possession of material depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Erickson allegedly had over 600 files containing child sexual abuse materials. Original story here.
Matthew Marshall, a Brewster, Massachusetts police officer, was arrested and charged with possession of child sexual abuse materials, dissemination of child sexual abuse materials, defacement of real or personal property, unlawful communication of record information, and photos taken outside of first responder’s official duties. Marshall has been placed on administrative leave and his firearm license has been suspended. Original story here.
Kedreyon Williams, a former New Roads, Louisiana police officer, was arrested and charged with first-degree rape of a victim under 13, first-degree rape while armed with a dangerous weapon, indecent behavior with a juvenile and pornography involving a juvenile. Original story here.
Updates
Dan Roark pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to sexually exploit a child and one count of receipt of child sexual abuse materials. He now faces 15-25 years in prison, followed by supervised release and potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in restitution.
David Cross was sentenced to 3 years for 19 counts of distributing, possessing, and/or viewing materials depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child.
Christopher Terranova is now facing federal charges for allegedly sexual abuse with 4 minor victims. The federal indictment also alleges Terranova bought a second home in Texas in order to be closer to one of the victims.
Josue Garriga III pleaded guilty to enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity. Garriga faces 10 year to life in prison, followed by sex offender registration and five years of supervised release.
Douglas Perdick was sentenced to 5 years in prison for distributing child sex abuse materials. Perdick will also have lifetime supervision after his release and was ordered to pay $9,000 in restitution to the victims.
Christopher Cordes is headed to trial for alleged child sexual abuse, bestiality, and charges related to child sexual abuse materials. He is currently out on bond.
Slate recently published a piece that piggybacks off of the Washington Post investigation I previously shared, check it out.
The inimitable Phil Williams over at News Channel 5 Nashville did a fantastic investigative report into the Millersville Police Department, who are currently embroiled in multiple controversies for their seeming embrace of QAnon-style conspiracy theories. Not only did members of the department allegedly break the law to perform stings against people they believed to be child predators, they did outright damage to potential cases against actual child predators. There's more, but I recommend reading Phil's work for the full picture.
You can find all my previous roundups below.
