A veteran Everett police officer has resigned amid allegations he enticed a prostitute into his squad car and engaged in a sex act while on duty, Snohomish County prosecutors confirmed Thursday.
Blaine E. Lassich, 45, of Snohomish was charged April 27 in Everett District Court with first-degree custodial sexual misconduct, a felony. Prosecutors have offered to reduce the charge to a gross misdemeanor, fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation.
That crime carries a penalty of up to a year in the county jail.
Deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson said: “I don’t care about the jail time. I want his badge.”
If convicted, Matheson said, Lassich will never work as a police officer again.
Lassich, who resigned March 8, had been with the Everett Police Department more than 12 years, said Dean Koutlas, the city’s human resources manager. Police department spokesman Sgt. Boyd Bryant confirmed that Lassich once was a vice detective, but he declined further comment.
Lassich’s resignation letter said he had to deal with some family issues out of state. Koutlas said he’s not aware of any disciplinary action against Lassich.
Matheson said a prostitute called police Oct. 11 saying Lassich had picked her up and told her to get in the front seat of his patrol car. According to the woman, the officer asked for a sex act, and she began to perform it.
Lassich then received a priority call from dispatch, Matheson said, and let her out of the car in the 5100 block of Evergreen Way.
The woman was not under arrest when Lassich picked her up, Matheson said. That meant it might have been difficult to prove custodial sexual misconduct. Matheson added that Lassich didn’t threaten the woman with violence or force her into the car.
The case was investigated by the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. Those who interviewed the woman believed her story, Matheson said.
“She would have no other way of knowing some things other than being in the front seat of that patrol car,” he said.
Among other things, the woman knew most of the letters in Lassich’s name, the time of the priority call and Lassich’s location at the time, which was confirmed by computer logs, Matheson said.
Reporter Cathy Logg contributed to this report. Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.
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