A 36-year-old Lansing man was convicted of rape Jan. 12 in Tompkins County Court.
Jovon L. Monk was convicted of first-degree rape, first-degree criminal sex offense, and first-degree sexual abuse.
Monk’s sentencing is scheduled for March 15 at 9:30 am
Prior to sentencing, Monk was the subject of a police body-cam recorded conversation that resulted in an Ithaca Police Sergeant being demoted and suspended without pay for making comments discrediting the Ithaca Police Department.
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The incident came to light a year ago after Sgt. Kevin Slattery admitted making the remarks to his superiors.
In October 2020, Slattery and an investigator went to the Tompkins County Jail to obtain a court-ordered DNA sample from Monk, who was a defendant in an active rape case at the time.
Slattery mocked Monk for asking if the DNA would be sealed in his presence, saying that it could not be sealed because he had to produce (Slattery) Monk’s DNA as evidence before it would be sealed.
“No, we’re not sealing it, man, we have a few places to put that first,” Slattery said in the video. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, seal it?
Slattery also told the investigator about a previous interaction he had with Monk in January 2014.
Video shows Slattery telling the investigator, “Yeah, Monk, I f—– picked him up one night years ago. I f—— pinned it to the wall. He was fighting with me, so I f—— took him down with a suplex. Then I’m on top of him and he’s still not giving up so I knee him. I f—— kneed him in the neck. F—— hit him in the f—— back.” And grabbed him by the feet or ankles with another officer, “we f—— bounced him down, the whole Way down the stairs.”
In a letter about the demotion, then-Ithaca Police Chief Dennis Nayor wrote that Slattery’s statements were not truthful, but the chief also states that Slattery’s allegations “underline that words matter.”
Slattery was suspended for 30 days and barred from applying for a promotion less than two years after his demotion.
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