Police officers and police departments are supposed to enforce the law and serve the communities they work in. Unfortunately, some lose sight of this. Here in Connecticut, former police officer William Ruscoe sexually abused and assaulted a teenage girl he was mentoring when she was a cadet in the Trumbull Police Explorer Scout Program.
Ruscoe, a 20-year veteran and supervisor, was arrested and ultimately pleaded guilty to second degree assault in 2014. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but the sentence was suspended after 30 months in 2017. He remains on probation and is a registered sex offender.
The victim filed a lawsuit against the responsible parties.
“For years, it has been known that police explorer programs, such as the one in Trumbull, put underage explorers at risk for sexual molestation. Yet, Trumbull had inadequate supervision and allowed rules to be broken, enabling Ruscoe, a police officer and program advisor, to have un-monitored contact with our client, who was a minor cadet in the program,” said senior partner attorney who represents the victim. “Our client was drawn to the police cadet program because she always looked up to and trusted law enforcement. Instead she was horribly deceived and continues to suffer emotional trauma from the abuse.”
Following offers of settlement were made by the young victim:
- $2.5 million against the officer who assaulted the victim
- $2.5 million against the Town of Trumbull
- $2.5 million against the Trumbull police chief at the time
- $2.5 million against the officer in charge of the Police Explorer Scout Program
Last month, Ruscoe was arrested and charged with sexually abusing another child. The charges include sexual assault of a victim under 16 years of age. This case is pending in Connecticut State Court.
