Cincinnati Police Officer Indicted on Multiple Counts of Rape and Sexual Battery

On Friday, March 16, 2007, a police officer with the City of Cincinnati was indicted on charges of rape and sexual battery. It is alleged that the woman had called in for help and Officer William Simpson responded and attacked her.

The woman made a call to 911 on October 3, 2006 claiming she had been beaten and kicked by her ex-boyfriend after he had broken into her Bond Hill apartment. Officer Simpson had arrived at her apartment and went with the 40 year old to file formal charges against her ex-boyfriend.

Upon returning to her apartment, located on the northern side of Cincinnati, it is alleged that Simpson refused to allow the woman to take photos of her injuries herself as well as refused to call for a female officer to be present. The photos would have been used for evidentiary purposes. It is then, investigators claim, that Officer Simpson started making advances towards the woman and proceeded to gain wrist control and forcibly rape the woman.

According to the charges, the woman has stated the Officer forced her to have intercourse as well as oral sex. It is also alleged that he warned the woman not to report the incident to anyone. He was presumed to be armed during the attack.

The woman reported the incident one day after it happened and Officer Simpson has been under investigation since then. Simpson had been pulling desk duty since November 15, 2006 after his police powers had been taken away.

Officer Simpson has been a member of the City of Cincinnati Police Department since 1991. During his service in Cincinnati, Simpson has received 14 commendations for everything from helping to convict a suspect to charity work. Prior to his stint with the Cincinnati PD, he had been serving at the Lexington-Fayette County Police Department, located in Lexington, Kentucky which is approximately an hour and a half south of Cincinnati.

Due to department policy, the Cincinnati Police Chief Thomas Streicher will be conducting an evaluation of the situation and report his findings and make recommendations on what to do regarding Officer Simpson's employment status to Milton Dohoney Jr. who is the City Manager. Streicher is reported as saying, "I think it's sickening that a Cincinnati police officer would use their position of authority and power in the community to commit such a crime."

After Officer Simpson was arrested on Friday for three counts of rape and three counts of sexual battery, he was taken to the Hamilton County Justice Center. He was later released on a bond in the amount of $10,000.

If Simpson were to be convicted of all counts, he could get a maximum sentence of 31 years.