A former Texas state trooper was found guilty of sexual assault by a federal jury Friday, according to a news release.
Lee Ray Boykin Jr., 33, was found guilty of assaulting two women in the Houston area in 2020 while on duty, U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani announced.
The jury also found Boykin guilty of two counts of destruction, alteration or falsification of records in a federal investigation.
It took only three hours for the jury to deliberate and reach a guilty verdict for Boykin.
The trial took just four days.
“The jury determined Boykin had deprived two separate victims of their right to bodily integrity while acting in his capacity as a state trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) in that he committed aggravated sexual abuse as to one victim and kidnapping as to the other victim,” the release read.
During the trial, one of the victims testified that Boykin took her to a secluded parking lot after ordering her out of her friend’s car following a traffic stop.
When they arrived at the secluded parking lot, Boykin falsely accused her of being a prostitute, threatened to take her to jail, and forced her to perform oral sex on him, the release stated.
He then told her to run while placing his hand on his gun.
DNA evidence was presented to the jury showing the victim’s DNA was on Boykin’s underwear, and Boykin’s DNA was found in the parking lot.
The second victim testified in court that Boykin had ordered her to get out of her friend’s car and placed her into his patrol vehicle.
She testified that Boykin told her that she had warrants for outstanding parking tickets and took her to the same secluded parking lot as the first victim, where she performed oral sex on him.
Just days after the incident, Boykin again tried to get her in his patrol vehicle, but she managed to escape.
The statements Boykin made to law enforcement were introduced and heard by the jury.
Boykin told authorities he thought he “got away with it” regarding the sexual assault of the first victim and knew he should not have done it. He added that he “just wanted to try.”
Hamdani said he was pleased with the jury’s guilty verdict.
“My office is firmly committed to ensuring the civil rights of every person in the Southern District of Texas,” said Hamdani in a statement.
“We rely on our police officers and federal agents every day to serve and protect. This lone officer, however, used his authority to stalk and prey on his victims for his own sexual gratification. We are pleased the jury agreed that such conduct will not be tolerated in our community.”
Boykin has been in custody and will remain in custody until his sentencing, which has been scheduled for April 4.
Boykin faces up to life in federal prison.
Sexual assaults and other such crimes remain a pressing problem in Dallas as well, where 26 sex offenses have been reported in the first two-and-a-half weeks of the year alone – more than one every day. Early indications suggest that the 2022 crime wave that swept across Dallas as the city council ignored public safety will not be slowing down in 2023.
