Sex Allegations Put Simi Police Scout Program in Danger

Simi Valley police may scrap the department’s youth Explorer program in light of allegations that an officer had sexual relations with an underage Explorer Scout.

“My instinct is to do away with the program,” Chief Paul Miller said Friday. “But I don’t want to do that without a careful review. I think we are going to give it a really careful review.”

The Ventura County district attorney’s office is investigating allegations that a Simi Valley police officer, who has not been identified, had ongoing sexual relations with a 17-year-old female Explorer. The case is reminiscent of a scandal that rocked the department in the late 1980s and resulted in the dismissal of two officers for similar behavior.

“I am disappointed that we have to go through this again,” Miller said. “It was made clear and all personnel understood that they were to obey the law, which did not occur in this case.”

Lela Henke-Dobroth, supervising deputy district attorney for the department’s sexual assault unit, said a decision is expected by Wednesday on whether the officer involved in the most recent case will be prosecuted on charges of unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor.

The department will decide by the end of next week whether to terminate the officer, who was suspended with pay Oct. 12, Miller said.

“There’s really two separate issues here--one as it related to the penal code and one as it related to departmental regulations,” Miller said. “We’ve determined the facts in the case and we are working through the determination of what we’re going to do about it.”

Miller said rumors of the relationship began circulating through the department earlier this month. The department conducted its own investigation into the matter and late last week turned the file over to the district attorney’s office to consider prosecution.

Henke-Dobroth said unlawful sexual intercourse can be prosecuted as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the circumstances.

The allegations are nothing new to Miller, who dismissed Officers Allen Walter and Timothy D. Campbell in 1987 after reports that they had had sexual relations with a 16-year-old Explorer Scout.

There are 20 Explorer Scouts in the Simi department, said Sgt. Jim Payne. The co-ed program, a division of Boy Scouts of America, seeks to give youths age 14 to 20 a background in law enforcement that could lead to a career.

The Scouts are assigned general station work including filing, desk duty and escorting tours and also are occasionally given the chance to ride along with officers and help out at special events.

Simi Valley Mayor Greg Stratton said he favors continuing the program, but he will look for additional procedures to discourage inappropriate behavior.

“I think that the program is a valuable program, and it really bothers me when so many of the good things that we do in the world get destroyed because one time things didn’t work,” Stratton said.

“We all talk about keeping kids out of gangs and giving them activities, and I frankly can’t think of a better activity than being a police Explorer Scout. I guess we need to look again and see whether the safeguards are adequate.”