Posted 12:52 am Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Woman Assaulted
By Ex-Jacksonville
Police Officer Pugh
Awarded $300,000
EDITOR'S NOTE: The names of the victims in this article are not identified in keeping with the Tyler Morning Telegraph's policy to protect the identity of victims of sexual abuse and to encourage the reporting of such crimes.
By CASEY KNAUPP
Staff Writer
A federal jury on Tuesday awarded $300,000 to a woman raped and retaliated against by former Jacksonville Police Officer Larry Pugh.
Pugh, 34, pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexually assaulting the Jacksonville woman while on duty in March 2005 and for retaliating against her after she reported the crime. He also pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexually assaulting another woman, and received a total of 12 years in federal prison. The defendant also has pending state charges in Cherokee County for the sexual assault claims.
The jury of four men and four women heard evidence in the civil trial held in U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider's court and deliberated for 40 minutes before reaching a verdict.
The court instructed the jury to find Pugh liable for the sexual assault and retaliation. The jurors awarded $25,000 in compensatory damages for each offense and $250,000 in punitive damages.
Pugh testified, recanting his guilty pleas and claiming his innocence.
The plaintiff, a 43-year-old divorced mother who lives in Jacksonville, said she was walking at 2 a.m. one day in March 2005 when Pugh offered her a courtesy ride in his police car. When Pugh began to drive in the opposite direction, she said she automatically got scared. Instead of taking her where she wanted to go, he took her to a dark, empty trailer house.
"He raped me," she said crying. "I was too scared to do anything."
She said Pugh drove her back to the neighborhood and dropped her off.
In August 2006, after Pugh had been indicted on federal charges, the woman was again walking at about 2 a.m. when a man in a van and wearing sunglasses approached and offered her a ride. She said she recognized Pugh's voice and declined.
As she walked away, Pugh got out of the vehicle and took his belt off. The two struggled and the victim tried to fight him but he put his belt around her neck, she said. Pugh began dragging her toward his van and "by the grace of God," the belt snapped and she escaped.
She said her leg was bruised and raw from being dragged on the pavement. Her leg is scarred and doesn't cause her any pain "until I look at it," she said.
She said she suffered mental pain and called the incident "humiliating."
"I can't put it into words how bad it feels," she said. "It's just horrible."
The woman testified that she's now scared of police and to go out at night.
If she was awarded any damages from the jury, the money would be placed in a trust, to be controlled by her daughter and used for her to get her life back on track.
The woman, who now lives in a motel in Jacksonville, said she fights her substance abuse problem daily and will for the rest of her life. She has been on probation twice, has been arrested numerous times for public intoxication and possessing drug paraphernalia but has never been to prison. She said she used cocaine two or three days before the trial Tuesday but she was trying to stay clean.
By CASEY KNAUPP
Staff Writer
A federal jury on Tuesday awarded $300,000 to a woman raped and retaliated against by former Jacksonville Police Officer Larry Pugh.
Pugh, 34, pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexually assaulting the Jacksonville woman while on duty in March 2005 and for retaliating against her after she reported the crime. He also pleaded guilty in 2006 to sexually assaulting another woman, and received a total of 12 years in federal prison. The defendant also has pending state charges in Cherokee County for the sexual assault claims.
The jury of four men and four women heard evidence in the civil trial held in U.S. District Judge Michael Schneider's court and deliberated for 40 minutes before reaching a verdict.
The court instructed the jury to find Pugh liable for the sexual assault and retaliation. The jurors awarded $25,000 in compensatory damages for each offense and $250,000 in punitive damages.
Pugh testified, recanting his guilty pleas and claiming his innocence.
The plaintiff, a 43-year-old divorced mother who lives in Jacksonville, said she was walking at 2 a.m. one day in March 2005 when Pugh offered her a courtesy ride in his police car. When Pugh began to drive in the opposite direction, she said she automatically got scared. Instead of taking her where she wanted to go, he took her to a dark, empty trailer house.
"He raped me," she said crying. "I was too scared to do anything."
She said Pugh drove her back to the neighborhood and dropped her off.
In August 2006, after Pugh had been indicted on federal charges, the woman was again walking at about 2 a.m. when a man in a van and wearing sunglasses approached and offered her a ride. She said she recognized Pugh's voice and declined.
As she walked away, Pugh got out of the vehicle and took his belt off. The two struggled and the victim tried to fight him but he put his belt around her neck, she said. Pugh began dragging her toward his van and "by the grace of God," the belt snapped and she escaped.
She said her leg was bruised and raw from being dragged on the pavement. Her leg is scarred and doesn't cause her any pain "until I look at it," she said.
She said she suffered mental pain and called the incident "humiliating."
"I can't put it into words how bad it feels," she said. "It's just horrible."
The woman testified that she's now scared of police and to go out at night.
If she was awarded any damages from the jury, the money would be placed in a trust, to be controlled by her daughter and used for her to get her life back on track.
The woman, who now lives in a motel in Jacksonville, said she fights her substance abuse problem daily and will for the rest of her life. She has been on probation twice, has been arrested numerous times for public intoxication and possessing drug paraphernalia but has never been to prison. She said she used cocaine two or three days before the trial Tuesday but she was trying to stay clean.
PUGH TESTIFIES
"I never took (the plaintiff) to the trailer and I never raped her," Pugh said.
He admitted to pleading guilty to "deprivation under the color of law and retaliation against a witness." He said the deprivation charge "involved the sexual contact or sexual intercourse" with the woman. Pugh said he signed a factual resume detailing the charges, which was written by a prosecutor and signed by Pugh under oath.
He said during the incident in which he met with the woman, he was in uniform and on duty. But, he said, he was never at the trailer house.
"The reason I pleaded guilty was not because I was guilty," he said. "I pleaded guilty for the benefit of my family.
"I've never had sexual intercourse with (the plaintiff)," he said. "I've never placed (the plaintiff) in fear of serious bodily injury."
He said he pleaded guilty to three charges and agreed to a 12-year prison sentence because he faced 30 years to life in prison if he would have been convicted by a jury.
Pugh said he believed about nine women made outcries claiming he sexually assaulted them while on duty but he denied the allegations.
He said the plaintiff had a bad reputation in the Jacksonville community.
"I'm sorry (the plaintiff) has had a hard life, but I can't apologize to sexually assaulting her or physically assaulting her because I never committed those assaults."
Outside the presence of the jury, the judge told Pugh he could face perjury charges for testifying that he was not guilty of the crimes after he had pleaded guilty to them in court. When he pleaded guilty and when he testified Tuesday, Pugh was sworn under oath to tell the truth.
Pugh said he understood the possible consequences.
Pugh testified that his wife and four children have been devastated by his arrest and could end up suffering more than he has if the jury awarded monetary damages.
He admitted to pleading guilty to "deprivation under the color of law and retaliation against a witness." He said the deprivation charge "involved the sexual contact or sexual intercourse" with the woman. Pugh said he signed a factual resume detailing the charges, which was written by a prosecutor and signed by Pugh under oath.
He said during the incident in which he met with the woman, he was in uniform and on duty. But, he said, he was never at the trailer house.
"The reason I pleaded guilty was not because I was guilty," he said. "I pleaded guilty for the benefit of my family.
"I've never had sexual intercourse with (the plaintiff)," he said. "I've never placed (the plaintiff) in fear of serious bodily injury."
He said he pleaded guilty to three charges and agreed to a 12-year prison sentence because he faced 30 years to life in prison if he would have been convicted by a jury.
Pugh said he believed about nine women made outcries claiming he sexually assaulted them while on duty but he denied the allegations.
He said the plaintiff had a bad reputation in the Jacksonville community.
"I'm sorry (the plaintiff) has had a hard life, but I can't apologize to sexually assaulting her or physically assaulting her because I never committed those assaults."
Outside the presence of the jury, the judge told Pugh he could face perjury charges for testifying that he was not guilty of the crimes after he had pleaded guilty to them in court. When he pleaded guilty and when he testified Tuesday, Pugh was sworn under oath to tell the truth.
Pugh said he understood the possible consequences.
Pugh testified that his wife and four children have been devastated by his arrest and could end up suffering more than he has if the jury awarded monetary damages.
SEVERAL WOMEN CLAIM ASSAULT
Joe Evans, an investigator for the Cherokee County District Attorney' Office, testified that the plaintiff, who had been living on the street, made an outcry about the rape to Jacksonville Police, which asked the DA's office to investigate.
After she came forward with the allegations, other women made outcries.
Evans said he talked to 25-30 witnesses, including women who claimed they had been raped by Pugh and people they had told, including ministers and police officers, which substantiated their claims. He said the witnesses ranged in areas from Athens to Tyler and beyond. Through the investigation, they learned Pugh had consensual sex with six or more women, he said.
He said Pugh preyed on vulnerable women who lived on the street and had drug or legal problems, "the type of people you would generally say are not credible." One-third of them had pending charges, one-third of them were on parole or probation and one-third of them had no criminal charges, he said.
Evans said Pugh was one of the coldest people he has ever interviewed during his nearly 40 years in law enforcement. "He'd sit there and try to stare us down," he said.
The plaintiff's daughter testified that her mother has had a hard life and after divorcing her husband, her life went downhill very fast.
She said her mother called her the morning of the rape, crying and scared. She was afraid of the police but agreed to go to authorities to report the rape, she said. The day the plaintiff was retaliated against by Pugh, her mother called again, explaining the "horrible" assault.
During closing arguments, plaintiff's attorney Curtis Stuckey said the victim has had a hard life but that didn't diminish what Pugh did to her. He told the jurors to put themselves out there, in the dark trailer house, absolutely helpless.
Defense attorney Jeffrey Clark said if the plaintiff had been a preacher's wife or a shop owner, the jurors should give her a "ton of money" but she was a street person.
"Some deserve more than others," he said. "She doesn't deserve the amount of money that any other type of female would deserve," he said.
Clark said her medical bills were virtually nonexistent and she has only a scar on her hip.
He said Pugh's wife and kids would be the ones to suffer if money was awarded.
Stuckey said Pugh's wife and children were not parties in the lawsuit and were not present in court. He said it was his job to determine how to collect whatever money was awarded.
He said her damages are no less than they would be if she a preacher's wife or store owner.
"Being raped, the pain that you suffer forever ... is incalculable."
The city of Jacksonville and its former police chief Mark Johnson were initially named in the lawsuit but were dismissed from the complaint in May.
Pugh, the city of Jacksonville and Johnson are also named in two additional lawsuits filed by eight women claiming they were sexually assaulted by Pugh while he was an officer.
After she came forward with the allegations, other women made outcries.
Evans said he talked to 25-30 witnesses, including women who claimed they had been raped by Pugh and people they had told, including ministers and police officers, which substantiated their claims. He said the witnesses ranged in areas from Athens to Tyler and beyond. Through the investigation, they learned Pugh had consensual sex with six or more women, he said.
He said Pugh preyed on vulnerable women who lived on the street and had drug or legal problems, "the type of people you would generally say are not credible." One-third of them had pending charges, one-third of them were on parole or probation and one-third of them had no criminal charges, he said.
Evans said Pugh was one of the coldest people he has ever interviewed during his nearly 40 years in law enforcement. "He'd sit there and try to stare us down," he said.
The plaintiff's daughter testified that her mother has had a hard life and after divorcing her husband, her life went downhill very fast.
She said her mother called her the morning of the rape, crying and scared. She was afraid of the police but agreed to go to authorities to report the rape, she said. The day the plaintiff was retaliated against by Pugh, her mother called again, explaining the "horrible" assault.
During closing arguments, plaintiff's attorney Curtis Stuckey said the victim has had a hard life but that didn't diminish what Pugh did to her. He told the jurors to put themselves out there, in the dark trailer house, absolutely helpless.
Defense attorney Jeffrey Clark said if the plaintiff had been a preacher's wife or a shop owner, the jurors should give her a "ton of money" but she was a street person.
"Some deserve more than others," he said. "She doesn't deserve the amount of money that any other type of female would deserve," he said.
Clark said her medical bills were virtually nonexistent and she has only a scar on her hip.
He said Pugh's wife and kids would be the ones to suffer if money was awarded.
Stuckey said Pugh's wife and children were not parties in the lawsuit and were not present in court. He said it was his job to determine how to collect whatever money was awarded.
He said her damages are no less than they would be if she a preacher's wife or store owner.
"Being raped, the pain that you suffer forever ... is incalculable."
The city of Jacksonville and its former police chief Mark Johnson were initially named in the lawsuit but were dismissed from the complaint in May.
Pugh, the city of Jacksonville and Johnson are also named in two additional lawsuits filed by eight women claiming they were sexually assaulted by Pugh while he was an officer.
Casey Knaupp covers county, state and federal courts. She can be reached at 903.596.6289. e-mail: news@tylerpaper.com
