FLORIDA PROSECUTORS DROP SEX-CRIME CHARGES AGAINST GAY EX-DC COP

John McDonald

Charges have been dropped against a former D.C. police lieutenant accused of sex crimes involving a 16-year-old boy.

With the victim unwilling to proceed to the deposition phase of the trial, Florida prosecutors dropped their case against Brett Parson, a former supervisor in the D.C. police department’s LGBT liaison unit.

“Due to lack of victim cooperation, my conversations with the victim’s parents and the potential scheduling of a deposition of the victim, the State believed it was in the best interest of the victim to not require him to come in for deposition and subsequent trial testimony, to respect his wishes and announce a nollo prosequi in the case,” wrote Danielle Lennox and Neva RainfordSmith, Assistant State Attorneys for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit.

In criminal law, “nollo prosequi” is Latin for not prosecuting.

Judge Tim Bailey declared the case over after a March 13 hearing, dismissing the two counts of unlawful sexual activity with a minor against Parson. The decision means Parson, 55, will not face prison time nor have to register as a sex offender.

Parson said he was led to believe the victim was 19 as they communicated and exchanged explicit photos on Growlr, a hook-up app for gay bears. The app does not verify the age of its users and Florida law prohibits claiming to be misled about a victim’s age as grounds for a legal defense.