A Prince George’s County police officer will spend the next seven years in prison for sexually assaulting a female officer after a Fraternal Order of Police lodge party more than three years ago.
Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy said the victim who addressed the judge to give a statement ahead of Lt. Richard Tallant’s sentencing Wednesday stunned observers with her bravery.
“Her first words were: She is unable to give a victim impact statement because she was a survivor, not a victim,” Braveboy said.
Braveboy praised the officer’s bravery in seeing the assault through to a conviction.
“Unfortunately, she was sexually assaulted by another officer. That officer attempted to shame her, attempted to instill fear in her, but she did not allow that intimidation to prevent her from seeking justice,” Braveboy said.
Tallant was convicted of sexually assaulting the female officer in the woods behind a Fraternal Order of Police lodge following a party there in February 2017.
“The FOP was closed, so they were outside. The victim had to relieve herself in the woods. That’s when Richard Tallant went after her, pinned her down and sexually assaulted her,” said Renee Joy, chief of the prosecutor’s public integrity unit.
Two other officers who were hanging out after the party “stumbled upon them and stopped the assault,” Joy said.
A jury found Tallant guilty of second-degree sex assault in December 2019, in part, based on the testimony of the officers who witnessed the assault. Tallant was off-duty at the time.
The judge sentenced Tallant within the guidelines for his conviction, to 10 years in prison with all but seven suspended.
