West Virginia Woman under House Arrest Awarded $275,000 for Rape by Court Officer

by Matt Clarke

On October 12, 2012, a West Virginia federal jury awarded $275,000 to a woman who’s home confinement supervisor forced her to perform oral sex under threat of being jailed.

In 2009, April Tomblin Chafin was on home confinement with an electronic monitor awaiting trial on grand larceny charges in Logan County, West Virginia when she caused her monitor to go off by stepping next door to have a beer with a neighbor. She was summoned to the office of John Phillip Reed, 73, the home confinement officer supervising her. There he allegedly told her that he would revoke her home confinement and send her to jail unless she performed oral sex on him and allowed him to fondle her. Similar incidents occurred two more times while she was under Reed’s supervision. Fearing retaliation, she did not report the incidents to police.

In 2011, Chafin filed a federal civil rights lawsuit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1S85 against Reed, the Logan County Commission and the Logan County Home Confinement Department alleging violations of her Fourth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights, state statutory law violations and state torts. One of the claims was that the commission and department had no policy against such behavior and had conducted no training of its officers to prevent such behavior.

Two other women on home confinement also came forward with similar allegations against Reed. One, Jeananne Gilco, said Reed forced her to perform oral sex after he caught her driving without a license. She also filed a lawsuit. The third woman did not file a lawsuit.

The federal jury found that Reed had proven her claim against Reed for violation of her constitutional rights and intentional infliction of emotional distress and her claim against the commission and department for negligent training. The jury awarded $125,000 in compensatory damages against Reed, $25,000 in punitive damages against Reed, and $125,000 in compensatory damages against the commission and department. It also found that the compensatory award against the commission and department duplicated the award against Reed.

Chafin was represented by Hunnington attorneys Kerry A. Nessel and Timothy F. Rosinsky. Because Nessel also represents Gilco, Reed tried to claim that, while they were in jail, the three women baked up the allegations in a scheme to get money. Obviously, the jury didn’t buy that defense.

"It was a hard-fought battle, but the jury saw through the lies of John Reed and justice was served," said Nessel. "Ms. Chafin hopes that the verdict will clear her name and, further, that it will prompt Logan County officials to commence criminal charges against the man who orally raped her on three occasions."

See: Chafin v. Logan County, U.S.D.C.-S.D.W.Va., Case No. 2:11-cv-00034.

Additional source: www.wvgazette.com

Subscribe today

Already a subscriber? Login

Related legal case