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Monterey County Herald - Monte
08 July 2009

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Salinas Police Department, CA

Salinas police officer arreste

Allegations of police misconduct made by a local resident led to the arrest Monday of Salinas police officer Jesus M. S�nchez, 34, on suspicion of assault to commit rape, Police Chief Louis Fetherolf said Tuesday.
"It's a sad occasion to give this kind of news," Fetherolf said in a news conference.

S�nchez, a former Alisal High School boys soccer coach and 10-year veteran of the police department, allegedly attacked a woman on separate occasions during a number of years while he was on duty and in uniform.

Fetherolf said the department started investigating allegations against S�nchez shortly after a complaint was made about a week ago. Police investigators interviewed the alleged victim, several witnesses and the officer and found there was sufficient evidence to warrant an arrest.

"The Salinas Police Department has fine officers who would not condone criminal activity in any way," Fetherolf said. "This department does not need cleanup ... but we need to set an example. We won't tolerate anything less than professionalism."

S�nchez was booked into Monterey County Jail under three felony counts of assault to commit rape, and was later released after posting $300,000 bail. He will be formally charged July 15. He was placed on paid administrative leave pending the result of an internal administrative investigation.

No other information about the alleged assaults or how S�nchez met the woman he is accused of attacking was provided because of the pending investigation, the police chief said.

Fetherolf said that given the nature of the allegations, there may be other victims who have not come forward. The chief said he reviewed the investigation of S�nchez early Tuesday before turning it over to the District Attorney's Office for review.

The district attorney could not be reached for comment.

Fetherolf, who took the reins of the police department in April, said S�nchez's arrest was an "aberration" and that no other indication existed of other types of misconduct taking place in his department.

According to the Salinas Police Department Web site, S�nchez joined the department in 1998 and was part of the team of school resource officers in 2007. He earned a bachelor's degree in criminology at Fresno State University, is married and has three daughters.

S�nchez is known around the county as a successful soccer coach. While he was Alisal's head varsity coach, the Trojans won four league championships and reached the section semifinals three times, reaching the Division I championship game in 2005. He was named The Herald's All-County soccer coach of the year in 2007. He stepped down as coach in 2008.

Alisal coach Mark Cisneros, who worked with S�nchez for two years, said he knew him as a person of integrity who is well liked and proud to be a policeman.

"This is a shock to me," he said. "Hopefully, these allegations aren't true."

Salinas Mayor Dennis Donohue said at the news conference that the police chief has the full support of the city. He said he realizes the implications of such an incident in the city, which has a gang problem and a community that largely doesn't trust law enforcement officials.

He urged the public to remain confident in the city as a whole and law enforcement in particular.

"We want to assure the public we'll do what we need to do in a timely fashion," he said.

Deputy Chief Manny Perrien said it isn't easy to investigate a longtime co-worker, and that investigators at first were surprised to hear the charges but had to put their personal feelings aside to complete the work.

"It's not easy, but it's part of the job," he said.

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Monterey County Herald - Monte08 July 2009

Salinas police officer arreste

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Monterey County Herald - Monte
08 July 2009