Everett officer alleges sexual harassment at state police academy

EVERETT — An instructor at the state police academy touched an Everett police officer inappropriately several times in front of colleagues, she alleged last month in the second sexual harassment lawsuit against the academy in a year.

In the lawsuit filed in King County Superior Court, Kaitlyn Ricksecker accused her former supervisor, Richard Klein, of groping and making inappropriate comments on her and other female cadets in her 2022 class at the Basic Law Enforcement Academy in Burien.

The complaint alleges the police academy “cultivated and sustained a work culture deeply rooted in sexism and sexual harassment.”

The Criminal Justice Training Commission certifies and administers the academy for all law enforcement officers in the state.

This is the second lawsuit that Ricksecker’s lawyers have filed against the training facility. In October, a Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy and a Port Orchard officer accused their instructor, former Port of Seattle official Leland Allen, of sexually harassing six female cadets in their class.

“Unfortunately, we believe this is a pervasive problem,” attorney Debora Silberman said Monday. “This case is about more than just the allegations we uncovered about these three women. It’s about creating a safe and equitable educational environment for future women who want to come and serve their communities.”

Klein worked at the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department for 22 years before moving to Federal Way in 2018, the Federal Way Mirror reported.

On Monday, Federal Way city spokesman David Solano confirmed that Klein was still on the job. In an email, Solano wrote that the city “fully supports and stands with Officer Klein.”

“Officer Klein was at the academy to train recruits and he did so consistent with his training and experience,” the statement said. “Although we will not be trying this case in the newspaper, we stand by Officer Klein 100 percent.”

Klein and Allen could face decertification, The Seattle Times reported Thursday. A spokesman for the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission did not immediately return a call from a Daily Herald reporter on Monday.

From August to November 2022, Klein served as Ricksecker’s lead instructor in the 19-week program, the complaint says. Klein regularly called the plaintiff a “ricksucker.”

Klein reportedly grabbed the plaintiff’s buttocks during class, demonstrating how he would search a sex worker.

According to the lawsuit, Klein ran a baton over Ricksecker’s breasts several times in front of other cadets. During one exercise, Ricksecker played a suspect driving a car. Klein asked her to get out of the car and turn around.

“That’s an ass,” he is said to have said in front of the cadets with the baton on their bottoms.

He then “repeated his actions” with another female cadet, the lawsuit says.

Ricksecker reported Klein to his superiors hours after the incident, the complaint says. He was “under scrutiny,” Silberman said. It was unclear whether Klein continued to train cadets.

Court records did not indicate whether Klein had an attorney.

Ricksecker was sworn in as an Everett officer in December 2022.

“Not only was it shocking in that moment, it’s still shocking today,” Silberman said. “These women reported that they knew they were entering a male-dominated field that continues to operate from the top down.”

Maya Tizon: 425-339-3434; [email protected]; Twitter: @mayatizon.