California Highway Patrol officer Sean Harrington is accused of forwarding nude photos from a DUI suspect's smartphone to his own phone while accessing it during an arrest.
In court documents
obtained by the Contra Costa Times, a 23-year-old woman alleged that Harrington forwarded six photos of her in a bikini and in “various states of undress.”
A Contra Costa district attorney recommended that charges of felony computer theft be made against Harrington.
"We've been investigating this for quite some time, the investigation is coming to a conclusion and we expect to make a charging decision this week," deputy DA Barry Grove told the Times. He refused to comment about allegations made by the victim's attorney that other officers and victims may be involved.
“We think it's a horrendous breach of the public trust,” Rick Madsen, the victim's attorney, told the Times. “We believe Officer Harrington committed a clandestine and illegal intrusion into her privacy which is unspeakable considering his sworn duty to protect the public. My client remains understandably distraught as we await further information about who else may possess the photos and what further investigation may unconver.”
The court records said the woman's iPhone didn't show a record of the photos being forwarded, but when the victim synced her phone to iCloud, the service indicated six photos were sent to a 707 area code, the Times said.
The woman was arrested for driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of .29 percent. Harrington and his partner stopped her and made the arrest. It was at that time the woman wrote down her phone password and gave it to Harrington so he could get a number from her contact list, according to an investigator's report quoted by the Times.
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CHP spokesperson told the San Francisco Gate, “When we have employees that have been identified in situations like this, it's not OK. We take it seriously. Our response is immediate.”