Jury rejects woman’s claims against 4 police officers

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A jury has rejected a woman’s allegations that a former police chief in Virginia and three other officers protected a prostitution ring that she said trafficked her. In its verdict Friday, the civil jury found that the woman was not a victim of trafficking but instead a willing sex worker. Once the jury reached that conclusion, it did not have to consider the question of the officers’ alleged involvement in protecting the prostitution ring. During the two-week trial, defense lawyers for the officers raised doubts about the woman’s claims. She says she was lured from Costa Rica with promises of work as a nanny. But defense lawyers pointed to an email between the woman and the leader of the ring discussing hourly rates for sex work.