FLORISSANT, Mo. — A fourth lawsuit was filed Monday against a former Florissant police officer accused of stealing copies of intimate photos during traffic stops.
The lawsuit, which was filed by three women and one man, alleged that the officer took the women's phones during traffic stops, returned to his police vehicle and copied or sent himself nude photos and videos on three separate occasions.
According to the lawsuit, the officer pulled each of the women over and asked for their insurance. When they told him their insurance was on their phone, he took the unlocked phone back to his police vehicle. In all three of the instances, the lawsuit said he used his own phone to take pictures of the nude photos he found on the devices.
In one of the instances, the lawsuit said he also texted himself a copy of a video showing the woman he pulled over and her boyfriend having sex. The officer deleted the text in the woman's phone, but she later noticed the deleted text.
There are now eight victims across four lawsuits. A previous lawsuit said there were at least 12 victims.
The lawsuit also names the City of Florissant as a defendant. It alleges the city has allowed "widespread customs, practices, and usages that are so pervasive that they constitute Florissant’s policies, which caused the constitutional deprivations," like invading individuals' privacy without consent and seizing personal items without consent or a warrant.
"Florissant demonstrated deliberate indifference to or tacit authorization of the Defendants’ misconduct," the lawsuit said.
The Missouri Department of Public Safety said the former officer has permanently surrendered his Class A peace officer license.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, is the second to identify the officer by name. 5 On Your Side is not identifying him because he has not been criminally charged.