LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is defending its decision to hire a deputy who'd previously pleaded guilty to a sex crime involving a 15-year-old girl and got the record expunged.
A 1996 Crimes Against Children report says Todd Walls engaged in a sexual relationship with the teen for nine months while he worked as an officer with the Louisville Division of Police. The documents say detectives recorded a phone conversation with the 15-year-old and Walls as they discussed their intimate encounters.
"What was your favorite time that you were with me, which time was just the best?" the girl asked, according to a transcript obtained by WDRB. "I like all the times over at your house."
"For some reason it did seem to be real good," Walls responded.
Despite a guilty plea to misdemeanor sexual misconduct Walls' law enforcement career continued. But he encountered more difficulties.
Employment documents show in the years since he was terminated by both Taylorsville and West Buechel police departments.
Court records also show the state of Kentucky voided his retirement and ordered him to repay thousands in benefits. That was due to allegations of a prior agreement to retire and return to his position in West Buechel, which would have violated a state policy. The city ultimately fired him.
"He's done an excellent job with us," Jefferson County Sheriff's Office Lt. Col. Carl Yates said. "No problems."
Yates previously touted the thoroughness of the sheriff's office's background check on Walls. He said, with the criminal record expunged, that Sheriff John Aubrey wanted to give him a second chance. But Yates admitted background investigators did not obtain the CACU report or attempt to track down former LPD or CACU investigators who would have knowledge of the case.
"We asked legal counsel, and we were we were told that it means it never happened," Yates said. "When records are expunged it means it never happened."
Expungement is the legal process where an arrest, charge or conviction are completely removed from someone's criminal record but it does not erase what happened or require anyone who ever had a copy of the records to delete them.
Walls' former neighbor, Dr. David Raper, said he obtained several copies of the 1996 Crimes Against Children unit file through standard Metro Louisville open record requests. He shared a copy of the 73-page file with WDRB, and we authenticated it through several sources, including one of the original investigators on the case.
"The sheer ridiculousness of the fact that someone could commit crimes like that and remain in law enforcement for years is something I don't think I'll ever get over," Raper said. "I could not even imagine that."
Walls case comes back to light with the implementation of House Bill 206. Raper highlighted it as he lobbied lawmakers to pass the legislation which requires the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council (KLEC) to decertify officers who have been convicted of misdemeanor sex crimes.
An officer cannot work for a Kentucky law enforcement agency without KLEC certification, so pulling their license essentially ends their career. The bipartisan measure passed without a single no vote. The bill's chief sponsor, state Rep. Rachel Roberts, D-Newport, publicly thanked Raper for his efforts at a ceremonial signing event in June.
But in the instance of Walls, it may not work.
HB 206 is part of a series of bills passed by the legislature in recent years to force out officers who shamed the badge.
KLEC instructed police chiefs and sheriffs throughout the state to notify the agency if they're aware of an officer currently or previously employed with a Kentucky law enforcement agency who has been convicted of a misdemeanor sex crime. However, there is no carve-out or clarity in the new legislation for cases that are already expunged.
"Do you think it's a good idea to hire a child sexual offender to be a cop or to allow them to continue to be a cop," Raper questioned?
WDRB News located the now-adult woman as part of the effort to authenticate the Crimes Against Children police file. She has never spoken publicly about the sexual encounters with Walls. WDRB is not identifying the woman, as she is a survivor of a sex crime.
"I feel like my silence has allowed (Walls) to feel entitled to keep a position in law enforcement," she said in a recent interview with WDRB. "I want to make the record very clear: He raped me. He took advantage of me. He committed a crime against a child."
After learning WDRB obtained the Crimes Against Children Unit police file on Walls the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office suspended Walls' police power, took his gun and badge and placed him on desk duty, according to Yates.
"We don't want people in our employment who have been guilty of any kind of crimes, especially serious crimes," Yates said.
Lt. Col. Carl Yates with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (WDRB photo).
When pressed about why the office hired Walls, Yates said "sometimes you make a right or wrong call" but said he didn't yet know which one was made in this case with the law unclear on how House Bill 206 applies to expungement.
"I think the one area that we could have gone farther would been the archives."
Yates said the sheriff's office sent a background check request to LMPD and it came back with nothing of note on Walls. But Walls never worked for LMPD. He worked for the old city police department prior to the Louisville/Jefferson County government merger. The graphic, detailed CACU report was sitting in those old city police archives.
"We may have to find a better way an easier way to get information from LMPD archives," Yates said. "That seems to be the stumbling block."
Yates said Walls is working on a year-to-year contract that is up in September and whether its renewed is currently in jeopardy.
"We are very appreciative of the fact that (WDRB) was able to obtain records that we did not obtain."
When pressed on whether the agency fulfilled its responsibility to find the truth Yates said, "I think we tried to do that? (WDRB) got some information we didn't get. Let's just give you credit for that and not criticize us."
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