Police explain reasons for reopening Gore case

[EvilDon]

Police explain reasons for reopening Gore case
 

By TERRENCE PETTY, AP
Thu Jul 1, 9:02 PM EDT
Police explained Thursday why they reopened a sexual assault investigation into Al Gore, saying an extra review was needed because detectives looking into the matter last year failed to notify high-ranking officials of their decision to drop the case.

A massage therapist to the stars has accused the former vice president of repeatedly groping and kissing her during a late-night, alcohol-fueled attack in a luxury hotel suite in October 2006. Gore adamantly denies the allegations.

Detectives investigated the claims in 2006 and 2009 but decided not to pursue the case amid a lack of cooperation and erratic behavior by the accuser. The story re-emerged last week after she told her story to the National Enquirer, and police this week said they would reopen the case.

Portland Police Chief Michael Reese said Thursday that "we have determined there were procedural issues with the 2009 investigation that merit reopening the case." Officers took the accuser's statement but didn't proceed further and didn't clear that decision with higher-ups. In addition, prosecutors were not made aware of the 2009 investigation until recently.

Police would not say whether they would interrogate Gore or examine a pair of black pants the accuser wore on the night in question that she said became stained during the massage.

Gore has said through a spokeswoman that he "unequivocally and emphatically denies" the accusations and believes he will be fully exonerated once the investigation is complete.

"Further investigation into this matter will only benefit Mr. Gore," said the spokeswoman, Kalee Kreider.

A longtime Gore friend and former campaign and political consultant, Mark McNeely of Nashville, said in a telephone interview Thursday that the allegation seems like an "utterly ridiculous" attempt by the accuser to enrich herself.

Reese promised a thorough, fair and expedited investigation.

"We ask for the public's patience as we let the facts of the investigation guide us and ensure the integrity of the investigation," Reese said. "I have asked Detectives to assign appropriate resources in the interest of conducting a complete investigation in an expedited manner."

The investigation threatens to engulf Gore in a sex scandal once unthinkable for the Nobel prize winner who built up an image as a doting husband and family man who fell in love with his wife at the high school prom and lived happily ever after. The Gores' squeaky clean public image always stood in sharp contrast to the troubled marriage of the Clintons during their time in the White House.

But Gore and his wife, Tipper, announced in June that they were breaking up, saying that they had grown apart after 40 years of marriage. Associates and family friends said there was no affair involved.

Not long after the split became public, Portland police announced that they had investigated Gore on sexual assault charges over the encounter with massage therapist Molly Hagerty in October 2006.

Police decided in 2006 not to pursue a case after her lawyer told them she would file a civil complaint. She came back to cops in early 2009 and asked that they bring the case again, providing them a statement that spelled out in precise detail how Gore allegedly assaulted her.

She showed up at Gore's 9th-floor executive suite late on the night of Oct. 24 while he was in town for a speech on global warming. "Call me Al," she quoted Gore as saying as he gave her a big hug.

She said he was finishing up a beer when she entered the room, and told investigators it wasn't long before an innocent massage turned into a series of unwanted sexual advances.

Hagerty said he dimmed the lights and asked her to massage the inside muscles of his thigh — a request she viewed as inappropriate. She refused and he allegedly put her hands on his genital area. Hagerty said Gore became angry when she pushed back.

Once the massage was complete and she began packing up her table, massage butters and other materials, Hagerty said Gore began to grope her.

"I squirmed to try and get out of his grasp, telling him to stop, don't, several times, and I finally told him and said, 'You're being a crazed sex poodle,'" she told investigators.

She said she distracted Gore, and he stopped. Later, he tried to ply her with cognac and fondle her again, Hagerty alleges.

The Associated Press does not generally identify people who say they are victims of sex crimes, but Hagerty has made her identity public by giving an interview to the National Enquirer.

Hagerty said they engaged in several random conversations over the course of the night, including his lingering bitterness over losing the 2000 presidential election, the marital situation of Bill Clinton and Hillary Rodham Clinton and his ties to Apple board of directors.

At one point, Hagerty said Gore pinned her on the bed as he played Pink's anti-Bush screed, "Dear Mr. President," on an iPod.

She says she finally got away at around 1:30 a.m., went home, and called a friend about the ordeal. The woman said she was initially dissuaded from contacting the police by liberal friends, whom she refers to as "The Birkenstock Tribe," and of which she counts herself a member.

One friend "was basically asking me to just suck it up, otherwise the world's going to be destroyed from global warming," she said.

The latest edition of the National Enquirer identified the masseuse by name and said she wants a full investigation of Gore because "I want justice served."

"He turned from Mr. New Age into a pervert," Hagerty told the tabloid newspaper.

A photo with the article shows Hagerty holding a plastic bag containing a pair of pants from the night. She said she kept the pants because she wondered whether the stain might be Gore's semen, although she has also said no actual sex act took place.

She told the Enquirer, "I thought the stain could have occurred while Mr. Gore leaned on me while he was wearing an open robe." She said she paid to have the pants tested, but the findings were "inconclusive."

Hagerty, 54, lives in an apartment in southeast Portland. She didn't answer her door Thursday morning or return calls to The Associated Press.

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Reporters Bill Poovey in Chattanooga, Tenn., and Tim Fought in Portland contributed to this report.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press

[EvilDon]

Ore. district attorney says no Gore prosecution
By WILLIAM McCALL, AP
Fri Jul 30, 8:55 PM EDT
Former Vice President Al Gore was cleared Friday of allegations he groped and assaulted a masseuse in a luxury Portland hotel room in 2006, closing a case that could have tarnished the Nobel prize winner's reputation.

After a four-week investigation that included interviews with Gore, masseuse Molly Hagerty, her acquaintances and hotel staff, as well as testing a pair of stained pants belonging to Hagerty, Multnomah County District Attorney Michael Schrunk said Friday there was no basis for prosecution.

In a memo to Schrunk released with the decision, Senior Deputy District Attorney Don Rees cited "contradictory evidence, conflicting witness statements, credibility issues, lack of forensic evidence and denials by Mr. Gore."

Rees also said Hagerty and her attorneys were uncooperative, witnesses could not remember anything unusual, Hagerty failed a polygraph examination and she would not say whether she was paid by a tabloid newspaper for her story.

Gore aides welcomed the news.

"Mr. Gore unequivocally and emphatically denied this accusation when he first learned of its existence three years ago," spokeswoman Kalee Kreider said in a statement. "He respects and appreciates the thorough and professional work of the Portland authorities and is pleased that this matter has now been resolved."

Gore and his attorneys met with Portland detectives in San Francisco on July 22, telling them he remembered almost nothing about the woman and was "completely baffled" by her statements, according to the memo.

Among the contradictory or conflicting statements about the alleged incident at the Hotel Lucia in downtown Portland on Oct. 24, 2006, prosecutors noted:

_ Hagerty, who has red hair, said she called Gore after the alleged incident to tell him to "dream of redheaded women, seemingly in contradiction to her assertions she was terrified of Mr. Gore."

_ Forensic testing by the Oregon State Police crime lab of a stain on pants that Hagerty said she was wearing during the encounter with Gore was negative for any seminal fluid.

_ An attorney for Hagerty told detectives she had taken a polygraph exam about her allegations and failed.

_ Two days after the encounter, Hagerty sent an e-mail to Hotel Lucia thanking managers for the referral and saying she was more than confident that Gore "was completely happy with the professional services I delivered." It does not mention any problems.

_ Hagerty named about 20 people, mostly friends, she claimed had information. But many did not return calls from detectives or could not be contacted, and those who were questioned were not witnesses.

_ All hotel personnel on duty at the time were interviewed and none recalled anything unusual except for a billing dispute between Hagerty and the hotel.

There were questions about Hagerty's claims from the beginning.

She first contacted police in 2006 through an attorney, claiming "unwanted sexual contact" by Gore, but the attorney declined to discuss any details. Hagerty then failed to attend meetings scheduled three times with detectives, and the attorney finally said it would be handled as a civil complaint.

Nothing further was heard from Hagerty until January 2009, when she appeared at police headquarters to say she wanted to file a criminal complaint.

An interview with a detective resulted in a 67-page transcript describing the massage therapy session with Gore at the Hotel Lucia, including an "inescapable embrace."

The memo noted that investigators determined the claims "did not merit further inquiry" and did not refer it to the district attorney's office.

Hagerty requested a copy of the transcript of her interview with detectives last March and told police she intended to "take her story to the news media."

Her claims were published in an online version of the National Enquirer on June 23, resulting in another investigation by Portland police. The story was published by the newspaper on July 5 and Hagerty was featured in the newspaper again on July 12 with photographs of her in what appears to be a law office.

She had also given her story to the Portland Tribune, which said it thoroughly investigated her allegations — including interviewing her — only to determine it wasn't responsible to move forward with a story.

It's still unclear whether she sought compensation from the National Enquirer, and whether she received payment from any publication.

In a prepared statement, Kohel Haver, a media and entertainment lawyer representing Hagerty, said she was disappointed the district attorney declined to prosecute "but understands their decision."

Haver declined to talk about whether the Enquirer paid Hagerty and said he does not know where she is, adding that "it's been quite traumatic for her."

He said no lawsuit was expected while the prosecutor's memo said another attorney for Hagerty, Judy Snyder, "states there is no viable civil claim due to the lapse of time."

Rees noted in his memo that refusal by Hagerty and her attorneys to answer questions about whether she was paid, and that given "the Enquirer's documented practice of paying for stories, it is logical to assume Ms. Hagerty has been compensated."

The Associated Press does not generally identify people who say they are victims of sex crimes, but Hagerty had made her identity public by giving an interview to the National Enquirer.

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Associated Press Writer Tim Fought contributed to this story.

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press