A California cop has been arrested after being caught masturbating by a family who called police for help with domestic riots, officials said Thursday.
San Jose officer Matthew Dominguez, 32, allegedly “touched” two female family members at the home on April 21 – then exposed himself to his mother, according to the Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office.
“Shocked and frightened” women ran to two men elsewhere in the house and one of them allegedly saw Dominguez exhibiting in the home’s dining room, the prosecutor said.
“The accused’s behavior is beyond concern,” prosecutor Jeff Rosen said in a statement. “Law enforcement officers are responding in our homes to help victims of crime, not terrorizing, traumatizing and creating new victims.
Dominguez, who worked for the department for four years, was called to the home with other police officers on a report of violence by a mentally ill family member, officials said.
Dominguez allegedly sent two other police officers to find the mentally ill family member before he was exposed, prosecutors said.
The officer is on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, a spokesman for the San Jose police said. He was charged with indecent exposure and could receive one year in prison and 10 years on the sex offender register.
Police Chief Anthony Mata released a video on YouTube on Thursday showing him removing Dominguez from the department’s home office.
San Jose officer Matthew Dominguez is accused of exposing his genitals to a family. County of Santa Clara
“Last week, I said that when an employee violates public trust or engages in criminal behavior, I will personally take that employee out the door. I did it today, “Mata said in a statement to The Post.
The incident was one of several involving the department that has become clear in recent weeks, according to the NBC Bay Area, which first reported the allegations against Dominguez last week.
Another employee was released on leave because he allegedly reacted drunk to a kidnapping signal, while another is under investigation for allegedly exchanging a woman’s methamphetamine pipe in exchange for information, NBC reported.
The police chief said he was proposing a change in disciplinary proceedings that would allow him to “speak openly with the public” when he thought firing a cop was the only option.
“Let me start by sharing my commitment to transparency,” he said in a previous statement. “The days when it was said that this was a ‘personnel issue’ were over at the San Jose Police Department. My administration and I will share what we can do when it comes to investigations. Although the amount of information we can provide may be limited, we will provide it. ”
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