WHATCOM COUNTY, Wash. — A Whatcom County Sheriff's Deputy has been charged with five criminal counts in court, including rape and fired from the department after two women came forward accusing him of sexual assault.
The deputy, identified in court documents as 23-year-old Austin Case, was fresh out of the academy and in the middle of his 15-month probationary period.
According to court documents, the first woman came forward alleging she met Case on Snapchat and at one point confessed to Case she had been arrested for DUI and was on probation. Case allegedly used that information against her – when he learned she had been at a bar (in violation of her probation) he ordered her to his house under threat of arrest.
The woman told investigators she “felt trapped” and felt compelled to sleep with him for fear that if not “he could call the cops on her and that she would go to jail.”
A second woman who met Case on Instagram says he forced his way into her home after the two met for dinner, made unwanted advances and then lifted his shirt to reveal a gun in his waistband. That woman was able to get away.
“In this state, like most states, it’s ‘forced sexual contact’ and there’s a whole range of actions that call fall under sexual assault,” said Mary Ellen Stone, CEO of the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center.
Stone says reports of abuse to her organization have increased 22% over the past five years. She points to the power dynamic in this situation calling the allegations a serious violation of public trust.
“It’s obviously a very difficult thing and it takes an enormous amount of courage, and I want to commend the victim in this case who’s willing to speak out. It takes a lot of courage to come forward and to say something because the stakes are so high,” Stone continued.
Case was booked into the Whatcom County jail on July 12 and released two days later on a quarter-million dollar bond. The investigation was handled by the Skagit Island Multi-Agency Response Team (SMART), in an attempt to avoid a conflict of interest – the SMART team is a group that typically responds to officer-involved shootings.
Investigators believe there may be more victims. If you have information, you’re asked to contact police.
For resources about sexual assault you can contact the King County Sexual Assault Resource Center's 24-hour Resource Line which is available for free and confidential help or information 7 days a week at 1.888.998.6423 (1.888.99.VOICE), or to visit them online, click here.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. Additional resources are available on the Washington State Department of Health's website.