When Loren Culp was a police officer in Republic, Washington in 2013, he mishandled a child rape case to the point another county investigated and arrested the suspect, who later pled guilty to two counts of child molestation.

  • According to an ongoing lawsuit filed in 2017, Loren Culp botched a child sexual abuse investigation, failed to report the allegations to state authorities as required by law, and intimidated the victim with threats of false claims charges.

  • The victim claimed she was raped and sexually assaulted by her family member, Roy Moore, for 12 years of her childhood.

  • When the victim reported the crimes to Ferry County Sheriff’s deputies and the Republic Police Department in 2013, Loren Culp wrote in a police report that he believed her allegations were “made up” and that he “felt she was not being truthful”

  • The victim also reported the crimes to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office in 2014, and after determining a pattern of abuse had also taken place within Benton County jurisdiction, Benton County deputies immediately arrested Roy Moore on child rape, child molestation and incest charges.

  • Roy Moore pled guilty to two counts of first-degree child molestation, admitting he had molested the victim on two separate occasions with sexual motivation when she was under 12 years old, and was sentenced to 67 months in prison.

  • A second victim came forward claiming Moore had also sexually abused her, but it was too late to file charges for those crimes.

  • Culp has since stated he does not believe Roy Moore’s guilty pleas means he is actually guilty.

    • In July 2020 interviews with the Seattle Times, Culp stated, “[Roy Moore] had a son, so he didn’t want to spend 30 years in prison. He took the plea deal. Not everyone who takes a plea deal is actually guilty.”

Sources:

o   https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/lawsuit-accuses-gop-gubernatorial-candidate-loren-culp-of-mishandling-child-sex-abuse-investigation/

o   https://www.khq.com/news/republic-police-chief-gubernatorial-candidate-loren-culp-accused-of-mishandling-child-sex-abuse-investigation/article_b24b8090-bca7-11ea-9e45-3bf2ef1ed0e4.html