Local
D.C. police target gay men in online sting
Effort called unfair as cop uses drugs, ‘perv boy’ to entice users; at least 20 arrested
D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said she is aware of the sting and supports it through the department’s participation in an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
The Federal Public Defender for the District of Columbia has alleged that D.C. police and the U.S. Attorney’s office have unfairly targeted gay men in an Internet sting operation seeking to arrest men who “entice” or “persuade” juveniles for sex.
In a little noticed brief filed in federal court last May, Assistant Public Defender for D.C. Jonathan Jeffress said that with full approval from the U.S. Attorney’s office, a D.C. police detective posing undercover as an adult gay man has targeted gay men for sex-with-minor arrests on adult gay websites that have “no history or reputation as locations where minors go online.”
The brief was filed under Jeffress’ name along with the name of A.J. Kramer, the Federal Public Defender for D.C., who is responsible for managing a staff of public defender attorneys that represent indigent clients before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Jeffress told the Blade that among the sites targeted in the sting are Gay.com, BarebackRT.com, and SexPigs.com, which are widely known as dating and sex hookup sites for adult gay men. He said he knows of at least 20 arrests of gay men in the sting operation in which the undercover detective met the men through these websites.
These figures are far lower than the actual numbers of arrests through this sting, Jeffress said, because many of the arrested men likely retain private attorneys and their cases don’t pass through the Federal Public Defender’s office.
William Miller, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office, said that since 2005, his office has prosecuted 68 cases “in which defendants were arrested in investigations in which an undercover officer poses as an adult pedophile who has access to a child (girl or boy).” He said that of the 68 cases, “about half involved defendants attempting to exploit boys and about half involved defendants attempting to exploit girls.”
Miller cited a court brief filed by the government in opposition to the Federal Public Defender’s brief, which disputes the allegations made by the public defender, calling them “baseless.” The government brief says the allegations and legal arguments made by the Federal Public Defender are not supported by past court decisions that upheld the legality of similar sting operations in other jurisdictions.
Jeffress, however, noted that a federal judge in D.C. supported the Federal Public Defender’s arguments last month when he acquitted a gay male defendant ensnared in one the sting arrests.
Jeffress said D.C. police Det. Timothy Palchak has made nearly all of the arrests in the sting operation.
According to court records and police charging documents, the undercover detective posts a profile on one of the websites indicating his interest in meeting someone for sex, describing himself as 40 years old, “athletic,” 6-feet-2 inches tall, 200-209 pounds, and “versatile.” In at least one case, he described himself as a “no limit perv” into taboos, including “yng,” meaning young people.
Court records show the detective informs those who respond to his posting through emails or instant messages using known code words or abbreviations that he’s into drugs, including crystal meth, and invites the men to his place for sex with him.
A police charging document for one of the cases says the detective mentioned to one of the men responding to his profile that he has available to him a 12-year-old “perv boy” who “loves” to be penetrated in anal sex.
Police and prosecutors have said in court papers the “boy” is fictitious and that the men targeted in the sting have never been in contact with an actual juvenile or with the fictitious boy — only with the detective posing as an adult who claims to have access to the boy.
In his court brief, Jeffress said many of the men arrested in the sting are heavy drug users, including crystal meth addicts, and have consented to engaging in sex with the detective and the juvenile for the purpose of “going along” with the detective, who they think is a willing adult sex partner, as a means of obtaining drugs.
“Instead of apprehending the Internet predator who is actively seeking children online — such as the kind of defendant one sees time after time in the cases from other districts — the U.S. Attorney’s Office is instead arresting gay men interacting in adults-only chat rooms that have no history or reputation as locations where minors go online,” Jeffress said in his brief.
“Moreover, instead of arresting individuals who have attempted to persuade minors, the arrests are of defendants who have been persuaded by the UC [undercover detective] to meet him and the fictitious minor for drugs and sex,” the brief says.
The brief adds, “[A]s the government is fully aware, the defendants in these cases are often struggling with meth use, and are therefore agreeing to the UC’s propositions not because they are pedophiles but because they are compulsive and exceedingly susceptible to the power of the UC’s suggestions, particularly on sexual matters. These defendants are also powerfully motivated by the UC’s dangling of meth as a ‘carrot’ to reward their travel to the meeting place.”
By meeting place, Jeffress was referring to a place that Det. Palchak arranges for the men targeted in the sting to meet him and the fictitious juvenile for sex and drugs. The targeted men are arrested immediately or shortly after they arrive at the designated meeting place, court records show.
Jeffress’ brief, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, called on a federal judge to dismiss a charge against a Canadian gay man ensnared in the sting in March 2011 during his visit to D.C. on the way home from Fort Lauderdale. Police and prosecutors charged Ivan Nitschke, 47, under a federal anti-pedophile statute that calls for a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in jail and a maximum sentence of life in prison.
The statute, referred to in court documents as 18 U.S. Code, Sec. 2422(b), is aimed at apprehending online predators who seek out sex with minors.
U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg agreed to a pre-trial defense motion to dismiss that charge against Nitschke last May. Following a non-jury trial last month, Boasberg found Nitschke not-guilty on a separate charge of traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct.
Boasberg ordered Nitschke released from jail, where he had been held without bail since his arrest on March 24, 2011.
The brief says Nitschke, an admitted methamphetamine addict, was arrested after he responded to a posting by Det. Palchak on BarebackRT.com.
In delivering his verdict in the Nitschke case, Judge Boasberg said he found the defendant, who testified at the trial, to be credible and honest in admitting to his addiction to crystal meth and being into promiscuous sex with multiple adult partners during his visit to D.C.
Boasberg said the defense proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Nitschke was not a pedophile and his stated agreement to join the undercover detective in a sexual encounter with the fictitious 12-year-old boy was motivated by his desire to obtain drugs from the detective posing as an adult sex partner.
“So at the end of the day, for all these reasons, in this case I strongly question the government, whether the government has even met the preponderance standard here,” Boasberg said from the bench. “And I thus have no hesitation in pronouncing a verdict of not guilty for the defendant.”
Miller, the spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney in D.C., said his office has no comment on the verdict in the Nitschke case.
He said the arrests in the sting have been part of a joint effort between the U.S. Attorney’s office, D.C. police, and the FBI through the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, which he said places a high priority on combating the sexual exploitation of minors.
“When the task force learns that pedophiles are using otherwise legitimate websites to seek out children to exploit, it does not hesitate to use those sites to identify these criminals,” Miller said in a statement to the Blade. “Our office has no interest in targeting those seeking out consensual adult relationships, but remains committed to identifying and stopping those individuals who are intent on sexually exploiting children.”
He said that of the 68 “sting” cases prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in D.C. since 2005, 66 of the defendants were convicted, one case was dismissed, and just one defendant, Nitschke, was acquitted by a judge. Miller did not break down these numbers between the defendants that pleaded guilty as part of a plea bargain offer and those, if any, who were convicted in a trial.
D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier, when asked about the sting, told the Blade she is aware of it and supports it through the department’s participation in an Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force created by the U.S. Department of Justice. The FBI is also a participant in the Task Force.
“The goal of the unit is to protect children against predators,” Lanier said, in referring to a D.C. police Internet Crimes Against Children unit to which Det. Palchak is assigned. “The group that is targeted is pedophiles,” she said. “Anyone that agrees to have sex with a child should be arrested and prosecuted.”
Lanier said Palchak and the ICAC unit “looks at several websites and does not target any one in particular…No one website is targeted,” she told the Blade in an email.
In a police charging document against Nitschke, Det. Palchak said that Nitschke initiated a private email chat with the detective in response to the detective’s profile on the website, which has since been identified as BareBackRT.com. In one of his messages, Palchak said he was getting off work at 3 p.m. “and meeting my lil perv boy that I met over the summer for a few hours. He is young so if that is not your thing we can hook up after he leaves.”
In his charging document, Palchak quotes Nitschke as responding, “Hey bud…said I was into that in my first message…fuck yeah…how old is he?” Palchak responded that the boy had not yet turned 13 and added that the boy was very “cool, vers and freaky” and “loves to be fucked and bred,” the charging document says.
It says Nitschke responded, “…yeah…into all that…and ready to join in.”
In explaining his not-guilty verdict for Nitschke, Judge Boasberg said this type of dialogue, standing alone, suggested Nitschke may have been interested in sex with the fictitious boy. But the judge said the preponderance of evidence established a “context” showing that Nitschke was not into sex with minors and that his overarching aim was to seek out drugs from the detective.
Boasberg noted that evidence submitted by the defense showed that he had been in online chats with half-a-dozen or more other men during the days prior to his online meeting with Det. Palchak. In all of those exchanges the defendants’ interest was sex with people around his age and drugs, not sex with a juvenile, Boasberg said in his lengthy verdict, which has been transcribed.
“[H]is actions show that meeting Detective Palchak is something he is barely interested in,” Boasberg said in explaining his verdict. “If you look at his actions, not what he said in the chat, but what he did,” said the judge, “it just doesn’t show someone who is interested in sex with children.”
It could not be immediately determined whether the U.S. Attorney’s office has asked Det. Palchak to change his tactics in communicating with men on the gay adult websites as a means of carrying out the sting operation following Boasberg’s not-guilty verdict in the Nitschke case.
The concerns raised by the Federal Public Defender about the possible targeting of gay men in a child-sex sting come at a time when LGBT activists have complained that the U.S. Attorney’s office has lowered charges in plea bargain arrangements for people arrested for committing violent crimes against LGBT people, especially transgender women, during the past several years.
Jeffress said the Federal Public Defender’s office has represented about a dozen gay men arrested in the sting operation whom the undercover detective met through various adult gay websites. He said he knows of at least 10 more arrests made through online contact between the detective and the defendants, with at least some through Gay.com.
In his court brief, Jeffress said prosecutors in the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s office typically charge the men arrested in the sting under 18 U.S. Code 2422(b), which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison, as a way to intimidate them into pleading guilty to a lower charge.
The lower charge often consists of a federal statute outlawing traveling in interstate or foreign commerce “for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct with another person.” That statute carries no minimum sentence and includes a maximum sentence of 30 years. Jeffress’ brief says in most cases, judges follow federal sentencing guidelines, which call for sentences for first offenders of between 46 and 57 months in jail.
The brief says the action by the men ensnared in the sting does not appear to meet the threshold for an arrest under the more severe charge, 18 U.S. Code 2422(b), which states, “Whoever, using the mail or any facility or means of interstate or foreign commerce … knowingly persuades, induces, entices, or coerces any individual who has not attained the age of 18 years, to engage in prostitution or any sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense, or attempts to do so, shall be fined under this title and imprisoned not less than 10 years and or for life.”
Pride month festivities continue through the end of the month and there’s a new event for Rehoboth/Dewey Beach residents and visitors, Pride on the Bay, set for June 27.
Boaters will tie up at the sandbar near Massey’s Landing from 12-4 p.m. Visit Pride on the Bay’s Facebook page for a map of the exact location. You can rent pontoons for the day at Dewey Beach Watersports (deweybeachwatersports.com).
Aqua Bar & Grill is sponsoring the inaugural event and will provide a floating DJ for the afternoon. Aqua will then host an after-party back on land (57 Baltimore Ave., Rehoboth Beach).
Local part-time resident Brian Sparrow is organizing the gathering, citing the need for more Pride-oriented events at the beach.
“I decided to create an event in June for Pride month,” Sparrow told the Blade. “There aren’t many Pride events in Rehoboth and Dewey where we can take advantage of the Rehoboth Bay.”
He noted that there is another event called “Bay Pride” but that it is held in late summer on a Sunday. “Having the event on Saturday will allow for more boat renting options for visitors and friends to join,” Sparrow said, adding that he plans to make this an annual event.
District of Columbia
McDuffie on LGBTQ support and standing up to Trump
‘I’m committed to governing with the queer community at the table’
Former D.C. Council member Kenyan McDuffie is running for mayor as Muriel Bowser’s third term expires in January. He’s running in a crowded Democratic primary field; recent polls show him in second place behind Council member Janeese Lewis George. D.C.’s primary is Tuesday, June 16.
The Blade sat down with McDuffie on June 8 for a wide-ranging conversation about his pro-LGBTQ record and challenges now facing the community.
The Blade reached out to fellow mayoral candidates Lewis George and Rini Sampath, who identifies as queer, for interviews. Neither responded to repeated requests over several weeks.
Blade: Members of the D.C. LGBTQ community are receiving information that most if not all the seven Democratic candidates for mayor, including you and Council member Janeese Lewis George, are strong supporters of the LGBTQ community. What message would you have for LGBTQ voters on why they should support you rather than one of the other candidates?
McDuffie: Thank you for the question, Lou. And thank you for your work over the years with the Washington Blade. I’m really looking forward to having this conversation. You know, Washington, D.C. is the capital of the United States, and our city is one of the most beautifully diverse and inclusive cities in America because generations of LGBTQ+ residents, advocates, and organizations have fought to make it that way.
And throughout my time on the Council, I’ve been proud to support that work by advancing equity and opportunity and standing up for the rights and dignity of every resident across the District regardless of where they live, who they know, how much money they have. And as mayor, I’m going to build on that progress by ensuring D.C. remains a place where LGBTQ+ residents can live safely, where they can access quality healthcare and housing, they can build families and businesses and thrive in the neighborhoods of our city.
And now more than ever, making sure we protect residents from a hostile federal administration, including President Donald Trump, who seeks to roll back civil rights and civil liberties.
Blade: Some people, including members of the LGBTQ community, have criticized Mayor Bowser for what they say has been her position of not standing up forcefully enough against the Trump administration on various issues, including the deployment of National Guard soldiers in the city. What are your thoughts on that? How would you deal with the Trump administration if you were mayor?
McDuffie: Well, I’m going to deal with the Trump administration by prioritizing D.C. residents first. I’m going to stand up and fight back against federal infringement from Donald Trump and from Republicans in Congress or any other individual or organization that seeks to threaten Washington, D.C. residents.
And that means on day one rescind the executive order that permits cooperation between the Metropolitan Police Department and ICE and DHS [U.S. Department of Homeland Security]. And I know because of my work 13-and-a-half years on the Council doing research, authoring transformational legislation that protects people’s civil rights, that makes the Metropolitan Police Department more transparent, doing things like authoring the landmark NEAR Act [a 2016 D.C. law aimed at reducing violent crime].
I know from that work, and I know from my former work as a civil rights attorney in President Obama’s Department of Justice that you have to fight to ensure that we have a fair and more just society. I did that as a civil rights attorney traveling the country fighting to protect people’s civil rights. I did that as a prosecutor who fought crime and delivered justice for victims.
And I’m going to do that as mayor to ensure that we use every legal and political tool available as mayor to resist any federal effort to roll back LGBTQ+ protections in Washington, D.C. And I’m committed to governing with the queer community at the table and lifting up their contributions to this city at the center of every decision that I make as mayor. You know that I’ve been a champion making Washington, D.|C. more equitable, more just, and economically inclusive. And I plan to continue to build on that work that I have done and the work that so many important people have done in the LGBTQ+ community in Washington, D.C. to make sure that our residents can live safely and thrive in Washington, D.C.
And so, we’re going to fight back against Trump and any hostile federal administration to make sure we’re protecting the residents first. And we will work with the federal government where there is an opportunity to do transformational economic development projects like RFK, transformational infrastructure projects like expanding Union Station. Both of those will create thousands of jobs and thousands of opportunities for D.C.-based small businesses.
But I will draw a very bright line when it comes to protecting the civil rights of individuals across the District of Columbia, including the LGBTQ+ community and our vulnerable neighbors like our immigrant neighbors and families who in many cases today are living in the shadows, afraid to leave their homes, afraid to go to work, afraid to walk their kids to school because they’re being snatched off the streets in safe places around schools and places of worship. And it is utterly despicable what Donald Trump has done and how he’s weaponized our federal law enforcement.
Blade: As a follow-up to that, reports surfaced last year that the mayor had to cut the budget for the Office of LGBTQ Affairs for this year by $600,000 because of a large cut in the city’s budget by Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives. Would you do something to try to restore the funds that were cut from that office?
McDuffie: Absolutely. I will as mayor fully fund the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs and direct it to proactively identify gaps in city services while also ensuring that the Office of Human Rights has additional resources to vigorously enforce efforts against discrimination across government agencies and within the private sector where it arises. I am a civil rights attorney by training. And I will bring the full force of the District of Columbia government to bear when it comes to protecting the rights of our residents, including especially our vulnerable communities like LGBTQ+ community.
And we’re going to fully fund the Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs and make sure it is doing the work proactively to identify any gaps in services any gaps in resources that are needed to shore up the supports and services to the community. And that’s been my record on the Council, too. As you know, I’ve supported on the Council marriage equality. That I’ve supported helping to repeal D.C.’s anti-surrogacy laws, expanding opportunities for LGBTQ couples.
You know that I’ve supported polices that recognize diverse family structures and co-introduced and passed the birth certificate equality amendment act. I supported efforts to reduce bureaucratic barriers faced by transgender residents. So, that’s the kind of work that I’ve done as a Council member. And as mayor I’m going to really fight and deliver for our LGBTQ+ neighbors to ensure that they’re supported, seen, heard, continue to be woven into the fabric of our city.
Blade: Do you or your campaign have any plans for participating in any LGBTQ Pride events during Pride month?
McDuffie: Oh, we are going to be not only front and center in marching in the Pride parade but being there as a resources to work directly with the organizers to make sure that they have every single thing that they need to build on the strong legacy of Washington, D.C.’s Pride community and all the festivities that are associated with it. I was so proud to stand on the steps of the Wilson Building last year for WorldPride and announce what Washington, D.C. does and how we do it and why we’re so special as a city. And when it comes to supporting Pride this year, I’m going to be right there marching with everybody else and ensuring that the longstanding relationships with the LGBTQ community across the District of Columbia are shown and displayed as our nation’s capital sets the example of what it looks like to really protect the beautiful diversity that we have in our city.
Blade: People have been talking about the poll just released by the Washington Post showing you to be 11 points behind Janeese Lewis George in the race for mayor. Do you have any reaction to that?
McDuffie: Well, what the poll shows is that I have the broadest coalition of support across the District of Columbia. Because I continue to show up and meet residents where they are. That demonstrates whether you are a longtime resident or whether you are Black or white or a member of the LGBTQ+ community. My support in the District of Columbia is deep, and it is broad.
Because I will govern as mayor in the way I have led as a Council member, which is by building the broadest coalition possible, walking across differences and really coming out with solutions to address intractable issues. So, I know that Washington, D.C. has been a national leader when it comes to protecting civil rights and ensuring fairness and justice. And I’ve been one of the people who led on those issues, making our city more racially equitable, more socially just, and more economically inclusive.
Blade: As you know, some of your critics have been trying to link you to the Pepco electric rate increase and for being responsible for higher utility costs. Do you have a response to that?
McDuffie: They try to link me to a number of things that are a part of what is a widespread disinformation campaign much like what we’ve seen on a national level from Trump and other Republicans. I don’t accept it. I think the fact that I’ve been elected four times in the District of Columbia, I demonstrate my ability to work with residents across the District of Columbia to get things done.
When it comes to utilities, I’m going to fight to lower utilities costs for residents, ensuring that we expand renewables and alternative energy sources, recognizing that Janeese Lewis George was the only Council member who voted against expanding solar a couple of years ago. But I’m also going to make sure that we have automatic enrollment for individuals in the District of Columbia who are having trouble paying for the utilities. I will make sure we protect seniors who are feeling a squeeze when it comes to being able to pay for utilities …
And we’re going to make sure that everybody understands why their energy bill is going up and push back against disinformation, so that they understand that a lot of what we’re seeing in increased utility bills, which I also face with my wife, is driven by demand on the regional grid at PJM. It is the data centers that are driving up our costs and lowering supplies. I’m going to hold those data centers accountable to pay their fair share for how they are contributing to the increase in utility costs that residents across the District of Columbia and across the region are seeing on their Pepco bills.
Blade: Thank you for your time. Do you have anything else you may wish to say to conclude your remarks?
McDuffie: Just to be clear that the disinformation campaign that Janeese Lewis George and her supporters are waging is one of the lowest political tactics that we’ve seen in D.C. politics. But she is banking on voters who are not doing their research. And what I know is that D.C. voters are smart. They know me from my work on the Council. And they know I am better qualified on day one to stand up and fight back against Trump to protect home rule and to deliver a city that is safer, that is more affordable and deliver a government that is more accountable and works for residents across the District of Columbia.
District of Columbia
David Archuleta, Monroe Alise named D.C. Pride parade marshals
Honorees ‘live authentically’ and ‘power of sharing your story’
The Capital Pride Alliance has announced that David Archuleta and Monroe Alise will be the grand marshals for the Pride parade on June 20.
Ryan Bos, the Capital Pride Alliance’s president, said the two were chosen for the way that they exemplify the theme “Exist. Resist. Have the Audacity!”
Archuleta is the “American Idol” season 7 runner-up and a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community.
He grew up religious and has been clear about his struggle to reconcile his faith, identity, and self-expression. In 2021, he publicly came out and has since been a major voice for LGBTQ visibility and acceptance. This year, Archuleta published the memoir “Devout,” which details his lived experience as a closeted Mormon teenager.
Alise is a transgender advocate and a D.C. native.
She has appeared in the shows “P-Valley” and “The Chi.” She also grew a major online following through her social media series “I’m CLOCKABLE,” where she discusses topics such as dating, culture, and self-discovery from the perspective of a queer person.
“Together, they represent to live authentically and the power of sharing your story to create change,” Bos said in a statement.
As grand marshals, the two will kick off celebrations leading up to the parade and participate in it. Alise will join the Crack of Noon Parade Brunch from 12-3 p.m. at Viceroy Washington, alongside honorees such as D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.
The parade will kick off at 3 p.m. at the intersection of 14th and T Streets, N.W., before moving straight down 14th Street and ending at Pennsylvania Avenue at 7 p.m. The parade is free for anyone to watch at designated viewing areas.
More information about celebrations throughout Pride and the parade can be found at www.capitalpride.org.
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