Judge Leans Toward Trial in Lawsuit Alleging Sheriff's Deputy Sexually Abused Girl

A judge considering a lawsuit against the county by a woman, who claims she was sexually abused by a sheriff's deputy when she was 15, said today he was inclined to let the lawsuit go to trial.

The complaint was brought in December 2012 in Los Angeles Superior Court and involves former Deputy Kenneth Alexander, who was sentenced three months earlier to 90 days in jail and five years probation. He resigned and pleaded no contest to one count of oral copulation of a person under 18, according to Deputy District Attorney Andrea Thompson.

The girl, now 18, is identified in the suit as "Jane Doe."

In a tentative written ruling, Judge Joseph Kalin said he was leaning toward denying a motion by defense attorneys to dismiss the case, because he believes there are triable issues for a jury. But he said he wanted to take the issues under submission before issuing a final decision.

Lawyer Amie Park, on behalf of the county, said the girl's attorneys presented no evidence that Sheriff's Department management knew Alexander would develop a relationship with the girl. Park also said there were no facts showing Alexander invoked any police authority when he committed the alleged abuses.

However, attorney Robert Glassman, on behalf of the plaintiff, said Alexander "lured her, coerced her" into meeting with him and then "abused his authority by raping and assaulting her."

The young woman did not call 911 to report the alleged abuses because she was afraid of him and believed "he is 911," Glassman said.

Alexander, assigned to the sheriff's Marina del Rey station at the time, responded to two calls at the girl's home in December 2010, according to the suit. He was 45 years old at the time and she was 15, the suit states.

He gave the girl his business card and cell number both times and told her during the second visit that "he really liked her" and to "call him on his cell number if she had any problems," according to the suit.

Alexander told the girl he mentored other youths and could help her, the suit states.

The girl later sought out Alexander to discuss emotional issues at home involving her mother, the suit states.

The two began having phone conversations, most initiated by Alexander, that gradually grew to be "more sexual in nature," the suit states.

In January 2011, Alexander persuaded the girl to come to his home, where he told her about the first time he shot someone, the lawsuit states. He later asked her if he could take nude photos of her, but she refused, according to the suit.

Although the girl was "shaking and scared," Alexander took her pants off, performed oral sex on her and then had intercourse with her, according to the suit.

About a month later, Alexander called the girl, and she agreed to meet him, according to the lawsuit, which said Alexander induced her to  perform oral sex on him.

At the time, the deputy and his wife were "in the process of adopting a girl Alexander had met while she was in foster care," according to the plaintiffs' attorneys court papers.

--City News Service