Jessica Contrera

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.

Dec 12, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Jenn Abelson |Jessica Contrera

The Justice Department issued new guidelines Thursday on preventing school police from sexually abusing students, a first-of-its-kind effort to create safeguards around cops with immense access to children. The directives urge law enforcement agencies to train school police on appropriate boundaries with kids, ensure there are "multiple ways" for students to report troubling behavior and fully investigate complaints of sexual assault and misconduct by officers.