Moore Police Department release report on Senator’s motel incident

Oklahoma State Sen. Ralph Shortey was effectively suspended from his position after it was revealed he had been found in a hotel room with a teenage boy. AP Photo, Sue Ogrocki, File.

The Moore Police Department Wednesday evening released a heavily redacted incident report providing more information about an incident involving Oklahoma State Sen. Ralph Shortey. The report details events in the early morning hours of March 9.

While the suspect’s name, as well as the victim’s and witnesses’, is redacted, it appears to confirm details of Sen. Shortey being interviewed by Moore police after he was found in a Super 8 motel room with a teenage boy. Earlier reports, from KOCO TV and other news outlets, indicated that the Moore police recommended charges which include: soliciting prostitution of a minor, prostitution within 1,000 feet of a church and transporting for the purpose of prostitution.

The report, by MSgt. J. White of the Moore Police Department, gives details of the incident and the reason that the police were called to the motel.

Here are some of the details from the report:

“Dispatch advised a juvenile male was observed entering the above listed hotel room with an adult male and further advised the juvenile’s father [name redacted] as on scene.

“Contact was made with [the father] who advised his juvenile some [name redacted] was observed entering the hotel room with an adult male subject”

The father advised that his son’s girlfriend witnessed this and called him. The father advised police that he had not reported [his son] a runaway…but advised he has a history of soliciting himself on Craigslist for sexual conduct and also has a history of drug abuse.

MSgt. White and two other officers approached the hotel room, and “I could smell a strong odor of raw marijuana emitting from the hotel room.

After checking the rear of the hotel for windows, White returned to the front, where he found one of the other officers conversing with someone through the door of the room.

MSgt. White wrote, “The subject was advised to open the door and he inquired as to why we were there. The male subject was advised he needed to open the door due to our knowledge of a juvenile being inside the hotel room and the odor of marijuana emitting from the room.”

“I asked [the adult subject] why he was there in the hotel room and he advised he was just there to hang out with his friend.”

The report indicates that the adult subject picked up the juvenile to bring him to the hotel.

A Kindle Fire tablet that the juvenile had left with his girlfriend had texts on it that included, “Would you be interested in “sexual” stuff?” That text was apparently from the adult male, using a screen name.

At this point, Sen. Shortey has not been charged or arrested. The state Senate on Wednesday afternoon effectively suspended Shortey from his position, and reserved the right to take further action, including possible expulsion from the Senate, as information became available.

Moore Police officials released the following statement on the department’s Facebook page: “"There has been a great deal of interest in an incident that occurred in Moore on March 9th, 2017 at a local hotel. At this time, an investigation is still ongoing. The Moore Police Department is committed to responding to and fulfilling requirements of the Oklahoma Open Records act. The Moore Police Department will be providing prompt and reasonable access to records for public inspection once the release of those records will no longer hinder any ongoing investigation and when the records have been compiled."