A decorated D.C. police lieutenant has been charged with sexual assault after being accused of groping another cop, according to federal prosecutors.
Burley Sanders, 46, pleaded innocent to the misdemeanor count in Superior Court Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s office said. He was arrested early Wednesday and charged with a June 27, 2008 attack on a D.C. police sergeant, U.S. Attorney’s office spokesman Channing Phillips said.
A police source said Sanders was accused of coming up from behind the woman and groping her. The woman claimed she pulled away but was wrenched into Sanders’ lap, the source said.
Burley could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
Sanders has been singled out for meritorious service during his police career. In April, 2008, he was one of several given an award for helping to solve a burglary in the Trinidad neighborhood.
He was also one of the architects of D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier’s controversial barricades in Trinidad. Police threw up the blockades in an effort to curb violence, but a federal appeals court later ruled that the program violated the Constitution.
In August, 2008, he was of 10 department employees given an “achievement medal” for putting the barricades together. Lanier cited Sanders’ “dedication, professionalism, and commitment to duty.”
Lanier couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
