Former Tulare County Deputy Sentenced In Scheme Trading Sexual Favors To Get Out Of Tickets
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - A former sheriff's deputy in Central California has been sentenced to prison after two women accused him of leading them to remote areas to ask for sexual favors instead of writing them tickets, authorities said Wednesday.
A judge ordered William Nulick to serve five years for crimes committed against a total of four women while on duty for the Tulare County Sheriff's Department. The two other women accused Nulick of groping them in inappropriate pat-downs.
Nulick, 44, also must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, said Stuart Anderson, a spokesman for the Tulare County district attorney's office.
In an investigation last year, The Associated Press uncovered about 1,000 officers nationwide in six years who lost their license to work in law enforcement because of rape, sexual crimes and misconduct.
The number is likely an undercount because states such as California and New York have no administrative process known as decertification, and not all states take such actions or provide records.
Prosecutors had initially charged Nulick with 18 criminal counts after the women said he assaulted them in 2013. He faced a possible life prison sentence and resigned shortly after being arrested.
Nulick accepted a negotiated settlement with prosecutors in November, pleading no contest to two felony counts of oral copulation under the color of authority and two misdemeanor counts of sexual battery.
Defense attorney Galatea DeLapp said she expects that her client will spend 2 1/2 years in prison with credit for good behavior. The settlement protects Nulick from what DeLapp said she considers excessive and undeserved punishment.
"From the beginning of this case, Mr. Nulick was forthcoming in admitting that he committed wrongful acts," DeLapp said. "This resolution was the best way to protect Mr. Nulick and his family from the risk of justice not being served."
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
