New Orleans — New Orleans
police booked one of their own with forcible rape on Wednesday after police
said a 15-year-old girl accused the man of sexually assaulting her.
Desmond Pratt, who has been an
cop for 15 years, was arrested at his home, according to Remi Braden, a police
spokeswoman. Pratt was placed on emergency suspension without pay after his
arrest.
Police released few details on
the incident, citing a desire to protect the identity of the victim.
Pratt was given a $50,000 bond
on Thursday but posted it by the early afternoon. Pratt will be monitored by
the court after his release. At the time of his arrest, Pratt was working in
the department’s Sixth District.
Pratt previously worked as a
homicide detective and in the department’s Community Public Housing Force,
according to police. He helped investigate several slayings related to the
high-profile investigation around notorious narcotics figure Telly Hankton.
In 2006 Pratt’s wife, Jonie,
accused three white cops of beating her during a traffic stop and later filed a
federal lawsuit. A witness reported that Jonie Pratt was dragged from her car
by her hair and beaten after she was accused of running a stop sign and then
resisting arrest. Police investigated the incident, and the lawsuit was later
settled.
One of the cops involved in the
incident with Pratt’s wife was Jason Giroir, who was later involved in the
fatal shooting of Justin Sipp in March 2012. Giroir eventually resigned after
police learned he published racially inflammatory comments on a local news
website following the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin in Florida.