Trooper charged with lewdness involving child

Erica D. Johnson

Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2002 | 9:30 a.m.

A Nevada Highway Patrol officer was arrested in North Las Vegas on Monday and charged with two felony counts of lewdness with a minor child, a North Las Vegas Police official said Tuesday.

Trooper Mark Hayes, 41, a five-year veteran of the Nevada Highway Patrol, is accused of inappropriately touching his neighbor, a 12-year-old girl, while they swam in his backyard swimming pool. Police did not know what circumstances led to the visit but they said Hayes was off duty at the time.

Hayes voluntarily turned himself in to police Monday and was booked into the North Las Vegas Detention Center. He was released on his own recognizance. His court date is scheduled for Oct. 1, at which time he will make a plea.

Hayes is on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the criminal probe and an internal investigation. Major Phil Tilt, Nevada Highway Patrol's southern command deputy chief, said the Highway Patrol will "take the appropriate action in relation to the trooper's employment as all the facts become known."

Frank DeMartino of the North Las Vegas detective bureau said the girl and her mother contacted police July 3 and reported the incident. At that time they also reported an additional incident between Hayes and the girl they said occurred approximately a year ago. No other victims have come forward.

DeMartino said the reason it took so long to issue a warrant for Hayes' arrest is because there were a lot of people to interview. "There were several witnesses," he said. " We wanted to make sure we had all our ducks in a row."