Pullman Police Department sergeant arrested for sexual misconduct

A Pullman Police Department sergeant accused of first-degree custodial sexual misconduct with a Washington State University student was arrested by Washington State Patrol troopers Tuesday.

Sgt. Dan Hargraves, a 19-year veteran of the department, was arrested at the Pullman Police Department at 6:30 a.m. Later that afternoon in Whitman County Superior Court, he was released on his own recognizance by Judge David Frazier.

Hargraves' arrest comes on the heels of a nearly six-month investigation that began in April, when an 18-year-old WSU student claimed she was sexually assaulted by an officer who gave her a ride home in the early hours March 31.

According to court documents, Hargraves first came into contact with the student on campus at about 11:46 p.m. March 30. He directed her to get in the back seat of his police vehicle after observing her stumbling and appearing intoxicated. He did not advise dispatch of this interaction.

He allegedly drove the woman to her dorm and gave her a warning for her intoxication.

Later that night, at 12:20 a.m., WSU Police Sgt. Matt Kuhrt allegedly observed the same woman appearing intoxicated outside her dorm. Kuhrt advised her he would be filing charges for minor in possession exhibiting and told her to go back inside her dorm.

After hearing the incident over the radio, Hargraves contacted Kuhrt and advised him he had a similar contact with the woman earlier. At 12:45 p.m., Hargraves' vehicle was observed on a surveillance camera driving down Linden Avenue toward the woman's dorm, where Hargraves observed her standing outside her dorm again, court documents stated.

"You disobeyed me," Hargraves allegedly told the woman. "I told you to not leave your dorm before. Now, I have to take you to the station because you didn't obey my orders," as stated in court documents.

The woman allegedly stated Hargraves did not place handcuffs on her, but she thought she was going to be arrested by going to the station.

According to court documents, she was crying in the back seat and pleaded with Hargraves, saying, "I'll do anything to not get arrested." She also noted her father was strict on drinking.

Hargraves allegedly asked her "What are you willing to do?"

"Like anything to not get arrested," the woman replied.

According to court documents, the woman said she thought she would have to pay him money. It then became very quiet in the police vehicle for several minutes until Hargraves stopped the vehicle.

The woman's cellphone location indicated she arrived near Reaney Park.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, Hargraves "opened her door and instructed her to get out and get on her knees."

The woman "said she remembered hearing him undo his pants and has a vague recollection of performing oral sex on Hargraves," according to the affidavit of probable cause.

Hargraves then allegedly drove around for some time before dropping the woman off at Rogers Hall, where she requested.

After the alleged incident, the student reported it to the WSU Office of Equal Opportunity on April 5, which reported it to the WSU Police Department.

The Pullman and WSU police departments requested the Washington State Patrol initiate a criminal investigation after learning of the allegation.

A WSP detective interviewed the woman April 18, who provided details and a timeline of the allegations and positively identified Hargraves. She provided WSP with the clothes she wore the night of the incident.

A WSP forensic scientist found semen on the sleeve of her clothing. On Aug. 14, the scientist found the DNA comparison showed a match between Hargraves's DNA sample and the DNA found on the sleeve.

Hargraves was booked into the Whitman County Jail on Tuesday morning and appeared at a bail hearing Tuesday afternoon. He was released on his own recognizance.

Hargraves has been on paid administrative leave since the initial report, Pullman Police Chief Gary Jenkins said.

The Pullman Police Department will conduct an internal investigation independent of the criminal investigation to determine if Hargraves violated the department's rules of conduct, policies or procedures. Hargraves remains on administrative leave but could still face disciplinary action no matter the outcome of the criminal investigation, Jenkins said.

"I want to commend the WSU student who came forward to report this," Jenkins said during a Tuesday news conference. "It takes a lot of courage to do that, particularly against a law enforcement officer."

Hargraves, who was a sergeant for the department for 14 years, has not been the subject of any criminal investigation before this incident.

Jenkins said Hargraves did receive counseling in 2016 for sending inappropriate text messages to a female employee of the department.

Jenkins said his department was "in shock" by the events.

"Honestly, I felt betrayed," Jenkins said. "We have a lot of employees that are completely invested in this department and this community, and to have someone that's representing us do something that is completely against everything that we believe in is very disheartening."

Jenkins said he does not consider this a training issue but said the department is "going to look at our policies and procedures and determine whether we need to make any changes to address this type of situation."

"At some point, we can't have a policy to regulate every aspect of a person's behavior, and at some point, we have to have some level of trust with our employees," Jenkins said. "In this particular case, it appears that this employee betrayed that trust."

Hargraves' next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 9.

Anthony Kuipers can be reached at (208) 883-4640, or by email to akuipers@dnews.com.