Plaintiff:
Parresse Edwards
Incident date:
06/06/2012
Location:
3151 W. Harrison St.
Allegations:
Edwards, a transgender female, was arrested and taken to the 11th District police station and put into a cell by herself. While there, Officer Stewart repeatedly made sexually suggestive comments towards her. Later he placed her in a different cell located further in the back of the lockup area, then repeatedly ordered her to engage in sexual acts with him. Edwards was able to collect and conceal evidence of Officer Stewart's assault. After he left, Edwards got the attention of another officer to file a complaint of sexual assault. The other officer did nothing to help Edwards, and simply reported her complaint to Officer Stewart. Officer Stewart, now visibly angry, returned to her cell and said, "We're not going to have a problem now, are we?" Once the morning shift arrived at the station, Edwards was able to file a complaint and show the other officers evidence of Officer Stewart's behavior. Officer Stewart was fired and later charged with multiple felonies, including aggravated sexual assault and official misconduct.