May 2, 2016 | Sex & Society

Judge rules Long Beach gay sex stings discriminatory

Sex in the restroomOn Friday, California Superior Court Judge Halim Dhanidina dismissed charges of lewd conduct and indecent exposure against a man.
 
Rory Moroney had been arrested during a sex sting in Long Beach in 2014. A vice-unit decoy claimed that the 50-year-old exposed himself in a restroom in Recreation Park.
 
Police said that during a two year period, they arrested about 55 men in the same restroom, following complaints about inappropriate conduct.
 
The judge countered that there was no evidence any such complaints took place, and found that the arrest of Moroney was based on discriminatory enforcement and prosecution
 
"The presence and tactics of the decoy officers actually caused the crimes to occur," Dhanidina ruled.
 
He continued, stating that "the arbitrary enforcement of the law as seen in this case undermines the credibility of our legal system, eroding public confidence in our ability to achieve just results." 
 
"This judge knows discrimination when he sees it," said Bruce Nickerson, one of Moroney's defense lawyers. "His ruling is powerful because it sends a message far beyond this case. It sends a message to police departments throughout the state who do these decoy operations for lewd-conduct cases."
 
Had he been convicted, Moroney would have been forced to register as a sex offender for life.
 
As for the police department involved in this case, it promised to take the court ruling seriously "and will evaluate how we respond to these kinds of complaints."

Maybe they should start investigating crimes, instead of creating them! 
 
Judge slams gay sex stings by Long Beach police, calling them discriminatory [LA Times]
 
Judge: Long Beach's Sex Stings 'Intentionally Targeted' Gay Men [The Advocate]

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