A D.C. police officer was sentenced Friday to two years probation for sexually assaulting a client who was receiving therapeutic services from him in Northwest D.C. in 2019.
Pearce Then, of Adelphi, Maryland, plead guilty in June to one charge of attempted first-degree sexual abuse of a patient or client (during the course of treatment) with credit for time served, prosecutors said.
The sentence includes six months of confinement and three years of supervised release, all of which were suspended.
Also, as part of his plea agreement and sentencing, Then will register as a sex offender in the District. He must also comply with the court’s intervention plan following his sentencing.
That plan requires Then to pay all fines, $100 in accordance with the Victims of Violent Crime Act and court costs as ordered.
It also required him to obtain and maintain employment, refrain from substance abuse and receive various mental health evaluations and treatments for substance abuse, sex offenses and “dysfunctional core beliefs, as well as current cognitions that promote maladaptive behavior and emotions,” prosecutors said.
According to the plea offer, the final charge of attempted first-degree sexual abuse carried a potential five-year maximum sentence, up to $12,500 in fines and up to 10 years of supervised release. In lieu of a maximum sentence, the government agreed to a probation-only sentence.
Then was charged with sexually assaulting the client receiving therapeutic treatment from him in June 2019, in the 3600 block of 16th Street in Northwest D.C. Police said Then was not on duty during the time of the abuse and he and the victim knew one other.
Then originally pleaded not guilty to four charges — two counts of sexual abuse of a patient or client during the course of treatment, one count of misdemeanor sexual abuse and one count of incompetent second-degree sexual abuse — in February 2022.
“The Metropolitan Police Department does not condone any criminal or immoral conduct by an employee. Officer Then’s actions are a disgrace to everyone who wears a badge,” then-D.C. police Chief Peter Newsham said.
D.C. police placed Then, who was assigned to the Fourth District, in a position without contact with the public while the case and investigation were underway. At that time, Then had his police powers revoked.
A D.C. police spokesperson told WTOP on Saturday that Then remains on indefinite suspension without pay. He’s been with the department since 2012.
