Witness: Cop Asked to See My Breasts

The trial of a former Huntington Beach police officer accused of sexual misconduct while on duty began Wednesday when a witness testified that the officer asked her to show her breasts during a traffic stop.

Mark Trachman, 37, is accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl at her home during a police interview in which she was reporting an incident of sexual abuse to him. He also was charged with asking a woman to expose herself during a traffic stop.

A woman testified in Orange County Superior Court in Westminster that last May, Trachman stopped her for wearing her seat belt improperly. She said that Trachman looked at her chest and said he knew why she wore her seat belt under her arm instead of over her shoulder.

She said Trachman asked her questions about whether her breasts were real -- although she told him the discussion made her uncomfortable. He eventually asked to see if the cosmetic surgery performed on her breasts had left scars, the woman said.

Afraid of getting a ticket, she said, she showed her right breast to him.

In his opening statement, Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Hess accused the officer of taking advantage of his position of power to solicit the lewd act and to commit four lewd acts on the 14-year-old girl in 2001.

But Trachman’s attorney, John Barnett, said the girl made up the allegation.

Barnett added that asking women to show their breasts is not a crime.

Trachman has been fired by the Huntington Beach police.