Officer Denies Molesting 2 Teens

A veteran San Diego police officer pleaded not guilty Thursday in Riverside County Superior Court to molesting two 16-year-old girls.

Toby Peale Freestone, 40, surrendered to authorities when he appeared at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta, said Ingrid Wyatt, a spokeswoman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office.

Freestone is charged with three felony and four misdemeanor counts, including sexual battery and penetration with a foreign object while a victim was unconscious. He is also charged with molesting and contributing to the delinquency of both girls, according to the criminal complaint filed March 31.

One of the girls reported the alleged incidents to the Murrieta Police Department last month, Wyatt said. The alleged molestations occurred in July 2004.

Wyatt also confirmed that a third alleged victim had come forward but said that case was outside the jurisdiction of Riverside County.

Freestone was released on a $50,000 bond on the condition that he not drink alcohol or have any contact with minors, including the alleged victims, Wyatt said.

If convicted, Freestone, an 18-year veteran of the San Diego Police Department, could face up to 11 years in prison, Wyatt said. A call to Freestone’s attorney, Virginia Blumenthal, was not immediately returned.

Freestone was put on administrative desk duty last week when officials learned he was being investigated, San Diego police spokesman Dave Cohen said. He is normally assigned to work special events, including security at Petco Park in downtown San Diego.

His next court appearance is scheduled for April 28.