10News Digital Team
6:49 AM, Sep 26, 2014
43 mins ago
SAN DIEGO - A former San Diego police officer who pleaded guilty to groping and illegally detaining four women while on duty was scheduled to be sentenced at the downtown courthouse Friday.
Christopher Hays, 30, pleaded guilty Aug. 22 to false imprisonment and misdemeanor counts of assault and battery under the color of authority by a peace officer. He is facing up to a year in jail and probation.
Before the plea bargain, Hays -- who is free on $130,000 bail – was looking at almost four years in prison if convicted.
Three women testified in April that they were groped and forced to perform inappropriate acts after being contacted and searched by Hays between October and December of 2013. The four-year veteran resigned the day after he was charged in February. A fourth woman also claimed Hays groped her after her arrest for shoplifting, according to SDPD Detective Cory Gilmore.
Hays is a former Marine and married father of two, whose father-in-law is Assistant San Diego police Chief Mark Jones. His case is one in a handful of cases involving SDPD officers accused of misconduct in recent years.
The string of SDPD misconduct cases began with ex-Officer Anthony Arevalos. The 18-year veteran was convicted in November 2011 of felony and misdemeanor charges involving five women he pulled over in the Gaslamp Quarter, including multiple counts of sexual battery by restraint, asking for a bribe, and assault and battery by a police officer. He is now in prison.
Hays' sentencing comes one day after the City Attorney's Office released that the city will pay $5.9 million to settle a federal lawsuit filed by one of Arevalos' victims. It is the more recent of about a dozen settlements reached between the city and women connected to the case.
The city's insurance carriers are expected to pick up around $5.7 million of the settlement, leaving the city to pay around $200,000.
City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said that in all the Arevalos cases combined, including settlement and expenses, the city has had to shell out around $4 million.
On Sept. 16, the City Council authorized the City Attorney's Office to set aside as much as $250,000 to retain outside counsel to defend Hays against any lawsuits filed by women who contend he groped and illegally detained them.
So far, Hays faces one federal lawsuit involving three plaintiffs. The city defends employees against litigation for their actions while the workers were on duty.
Christopher Hays, 30, pleaded guilty Aug. 22 to false imprisonment and misdemeanor counts of assault and battery under the color of authority by a peace officer. He is facing up to a year in jail and probation.
Before the plea bargain, Hays -- who is free on $130,000 bail – was looking at almost four years in prison if convicted.
Three women testified in April that they were groped and forced to perform inappropriate acts after being contacted and searched by Hays between October and December of 2013. The four-year veteran resigned the day after he was charged in February. A fourth woman also claimed Hays groped her after her arrest for shoplifting, according to SDPD Detective Cory Gilmore.
Hays is a former Marine and married father of two, whose father-in-law is Assistant San Diego police Chief Mark Jones. His case is one in a handful of cases involving SDPD officers accused of misconduct in recent years.
The string of SDPD misconduct cases began with ex-Officer Anthony Arevalos. The 18-year veteran was convicted in November 2011 of felony and misdemeanor charges involving five women he pulled over in the Gaslamp Quarter, including multiple counts of sexual battery by restraint, asking for a bribe, and assault and battery by a police officer. He is now in prison.
Hays' sentencing comes one day after the City Attorney's Office released that the city will pay $5.9 million to settle a federal lawsuit filed by one of Arevalos' victims. It is the more recent of about a dozen settlements reached between the city and women connected to the case.
The city's insurance carriers are expected to pick up around $5.7 million of the settlement, leaving the city to pay around $200,000.
City Attorney Jan Goldsmith said that in all the Arevalos cases combined, including settlement and expenses, the city has had to shell out around $4 million.
On Sept. 16, the City Council authorized the City Attorney's Office to set aside as much as $250,000 to retain outside counsel to defend Hays against any lawsuits filed by women who contend he groped and illegally detained them.
So far, Hays faces one federal lawsuit involving three plaintiffs. The city defends employees against litigation for their actions while the workers were on duty.
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