-Caveat Lector- http://www.courant.com/news/article/ctnews3.stm Police Face New Charges By JOSH KOVNER and TINA A. BROWN This story ran in the Courant November 13, 1999 Federal prosecutors probing corruption in the embattled Hartford police force heaped new charges on a central figure in the investigation, alleging veteran Officer Michael F. Basile used his gun to force a woman to perform oral sex. In what was another dark day Friday for the police department, federal authorities also indicted a sergeant, Albert Beauchamp, on charges that he committed lewd acts against two women. Another officer previously arrested in the probe, Jesus ``Manny'' Rivera, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of sexually assaulting a woman while on duty and in uniform. ``This is getting old,'' said a glum Sgt. Michael Wood, head of the police union. Wood and Beauchamp's lawyer, Donald J. McCarthy Jr. of Hartford, both said they believed authorities were persecuting Beauchamp for refusing to cooperate with a federal grand jury investigation that began a year ago. Beauchamp, who was suspended from the force Friday morning, becomes the sixth member of the department indicted in the investigation. The probe, which is continuing, has thus far focused on instances of on-duty violence against women by officers who worked in the Frog Hollow neighborhood of the city from 1992 to 1998. Beauchamp, 34, of Andover, is the first police supervisor to be arrested. A lieutenant retired abruptly earlier in the fall after being questioned by the grand jury and failing a polygraph examination, but it could not be determined Friday if he is facing arrest. Federal agents and inspectors with the chief state's attorney's office have also looked into three unsolved homicides in which present and former Hartford police officers have been mentioned as suspects, but no charges have been filed. The developments Friday came in the wake of a scathing report by a national consultant that criticized management and supervision in the 480-member police force. Acting Chief Deborah Barrows, who took the helm after Chief Joseph F. Croughwell Jr. went on sick leave in June, did not return phone messages seeking comment. In the 1990s, more than 20 Hartford police officers have been arrested in on- and off-duty incidents. Basile and Rivera last spring were indicted on federal charges of depriving women of their civil rights. On Friday, prosecutors lodged a new set of more serious charges against Basile, alleging that he aimed his gun at a woman during a sexual assault after driving her in his patrol car to a remote location. In all, the revised charges allege Basile assaulted five different women on multiple occasions while on duty from 1992 to April 1998. He was also charged with lying to investigators last January when asked if he ever took a prostitute to a cemetery and forced her to perform oral sex while on duty. Basile, who appeared in U.S. District Court in New Haven Friday, faces a maximum prison sentence of 50 years. Basile was one of the initial targets when U.S. Attorney Stephen C. Robinson and Chief State's Attorney John M. Bailey announced the joint corruption probe in October 1998. Rivera, 30, of East Hartford, admitted in federal court in Hartford Friday that on at least three occasions between 1996 and 1998, he forced a woman into his patrol car and sexually assaulted her under the threat of arrest. He faces up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 31. In April, two other officers arrested in the probe, Jose L. Pizarro and Salvatore Abbatiello III, pleaded guilty to aiding Rivera. In June, Officer Salvatore Gallo, of Colchester, was charged in the probe with raping a woman while on duty. He is awaiting trial. Beauchamp, a 12-year veteran, was arrested at city police headquarters Friday morning. His wife, Deborah, watched tearfully from the gallery in Hartford federal court as Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Finnerty charged that Beauchamp in 1994 and 1995 forced one woman to watch him urinate and another to undress and fondle him as he exposed himself. Beauchamp pleaded not guilty to the two charges, both misdemeanors. He faces a maximum sentence of two years in prison. Beauchamp was released on a $100,000 bond and ordered by U.S. Magistrate Donna F. Martinez to turn over his private handgun and two hunting rifles to federal agents. Finnerty said in court that agents would be visiting Beauchamp's home to collect the guns before 4 p.m. Friday, citing Beauchamp's ``history of violence.'' In the early 1990s, Beauchamp was arrested in an off-duty road- rage incident on the highway in which a shot was fired. Beauchamp was not convicted, and was promoted to sergeant by Croughwell in June 1995. Since working briefly as a street supervisor, Beauchamp has served as public information officer for the department, as well as head of the crime analysis unit and supervisor in the communications division. He had been a suspect in the corruption probe almost from the outset. In a 45-minute interview with The Courant earlier this year, Beauchamp said he considered himself a deeply religious man and was morally incapable of commiting a crime against another person. �1999 The Hartford Courant -- ----------------------- NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ----------------------- DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. 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