Jenn Abelson

3 weeks ago | washingtonpost.com | Jessica Contrera |Jenn Abelson

How will the Trump administration handle police who sexually abuse kids? (washingtonpost.com) How will the Trump administration handle police who sexually abuse kids? By Jessica Contrera; Jenn Abelson 2025051211000000 In the summer of 2021, a former police officer stood before a Virginia judge. Cleshaun Cox, 29, was charged with raping and abducting a teenager while he was on duty. State prosecutors offered him a deal.

Dec 19, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Jessica Contrera |Jenn Abelson

Larry Clay Jr., a former West Virginia police chief, was sentenced Thursday to 25years in federal prison for sex-trafficking a 17-year-old girl, then trying to derail the investigation into his crimes. Prosecutors had asked for a life sentence for Clay, who was found guilty by a jury last year. Clay, 58, did not react as his sentence was handed down by Judge Joseph R. Goodwin.

Dec 18, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Jessica Contrera |Jenn Abelson |John D. Harden

What steps can be taken to prevent these crimes? Return to menu After two years of reporting, we know that there is still much to uncover about this entrenched problem. Sex crimes are widely believed to be underreported, and the roughly 1,800 cases we studied only included those in which the investigation ended in arrest and the arrestwas reported in the media or court documents.

Dec 18, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Jenn Abelson |Alice Li |Jessica Contrera |Tucker Harris |Carolyn Van Houten

Warning: This graphic requires JavaScript. Please enable JavaScript for the best experience. MAYPEARL, Texas - The new police chief quickly impressed the small Texas community he'd sworn to protect. He started a Christmas charity event. He checked on elderly neighbors. He seemed especially good, residents noted, with troubled teenagers. The people of Maypearl trusted Police Chief Kevin Coffey. Few were aware that Maypearl was the eighth law enforcement agency that Coffey had worked at in 11 years.

Dec 16, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Jenn Abelson |Jessica Contrera

Indiana officials revoked the law enforcement certification of a former police officer Monday after a Washington Post investigation detailed how he used his job to sexually abuse a teen girl in his patrol car. Former South Bend officer Timothy Barber had kept his certification for more than two years, despite pleading guilty in 2022 to child seduction and official misconduct and registering as a sex offender.