Ex-cop’s indiscretions quash case

Indiscretions committed by a former Pinal County Sheriff’s Office detective led to the dismissal of charges in one case that he investigated and left officials questioning his ethics in two other cases, according to a report obtained by the Tribune.

The internal affairs report on William P. Langan, a former member of the Domestic Violence Unit, became available this month — nearly one year after the detective had a sexual encounter with a reported rape victim following the arrest of her husband.

The sheriff’s office learned of the May 15 encounter on Oct. 26 and began investigating Langan, who submitted a letter of resignation on Nov. 6.

In the report, the sheriff’s office investigator determined that Langan had a sexual relationship with the victim of a sex crime.

The investigator said the relationship during the investigation caused the case to be dismissed by the courts.

It also caused all of Langan’s other investigations to be called into question, the report says.

According to paperwork filed Nov. 14 in Pinal County Superior Court, the sexual assault case was dismissed due to credibility problems with the alleged victim.

Langan first met the woman at an advocacy center, where she underwent a sexual assault examination, the report says.

Langan told an investigator that the sexual encounter took place about two weeks after the arrest when he went to her home to talk about the dynamics of domestic violence.

“She just ... indicated that, you know, she needed a hug or something,” he told the investigator.

“I did hold her at that point, then she started to kiss me and she took off her top,” he said in the interview.

“I think, at that point I should have gotten up, I shouldn’t have even done anything, but I did,” Langan said. “And then one thing kind of led to the other and then we did have sex.”

The woman’s accounts differed slightly.

She told the investigator that Langan started making comments about her beauty on the same night her husband was arrested.

She said Langan asked her if she liked looking at dirty pictures, the report says.

She said they had oral sex and that he returned two weeks later when they had intercourse.

“I should have gotten the hell up and left that house and called somebody,” Langan said. “But I didn’t and that’s, that’s the whole problem.”

The investigation revealed this might not have been Langan’s first indiscretion.

Langan was working on a 2005 investigation into child pornography when he met a woman who later told a detective that Langan made several attempts to seduce her.

Langan’s actions and the court’s knowledge of Langan’s actions reduced the state’s chances of prosecution in that case, the report says.

The Pinal County Attorney’s Office did not respond to requests for comment about the 2005 case.

A third complaint about Langan surfaced in February 2007.

The former wife of a man who died when he ran in front of a van said Langan sent her a text message with an attached video of a nude male fondling himself, the report says.

In response to the report, Pinal County Sheriff Chris Vasquez called Langan’s behavior was “very disappointing and shocking.”

“If Mr. Langan would not have resigned, he surely would have been terminated,” Vasquez said. “I am now seeking the revocation of his police certification.”

Langan’s personnel file shows a history of praise from the sheriff’s office and the public. He served on the tactical team, was a firearms instructor and received a medal of valor.