Former Buttonwillow CHP officer arrested on suspicion of repeated sexual abuse of boy
Jun. 16—A former local California Highway Patrol officer was arrested Friday by police on suspicion of repeatedly sexually assaulting a boy for years, according to the Bakersfield Police Department.
James Grider, 44, worked out of the Buttonwillow office and didn't encounter the victim through his work. He was booked at 1:10 p.m. on suspicion of three felony sex acts and a misdemeanor of contributing to the delinquency of a child.
Inmate custody records show he's being held on $100,000 bail. It wasn't immediately known whether Grider has an attorney.
CHP stated late Friday night Grider is no longer employed with the department. He was a cadet in the academy starting in 2001 and became an officer that same year, CHP added, while noting the decades-long officer had been with the Buttonwillow office since May 31, 2007.
The Californian doesn't generally name alleged victims of sexual assault. The victim told police the abuse started when he was 15 years old and continued until he was 18, according to a BPD search warrant filed in Kern County Superior Court. He wasn't allowed to date in high school because Grider told him, "I'm afraid you'll stop loving me," stated the search warrant, which was filed May 26.
The boy told police Grider performed a sex act on him about three times per week, and it became a normal occurrence, according to the search warrant.
The boy, who's now an adult, reportedly told police Grider watched pornographic videos with him after taking him to McCutchen and Mountain Ridge roads.
The teenager sneaked out of his home one night with his friends to meet up with girls. The victim said Grider later questioned him about where he had gone and then performed a sex act on him, police wrote in the search warrant.
During a pretext phone call, the victim called Grider and told him about his suicidal thoughts because of the continuous abuse, police added. A pretext phone call is made by a victim while law enforcement observes the call and records it.
Grider asked the victim during the pretext call if he was at the police station, and said he wanted to speak with him personally, according to the search warrant.
Grider turned off his cellphone and all cameras inside his residence after the phone call, police wrote. Grider's wife said it was unusual for the cameras to be turned off and, when she tried to phone him, the call goes straight to voicemail, the search warrant said.
The search warrant requested permission to seize digital pagers, cellphones and computers. It also sought evidence that could depict alleged abuse, such as digital video recordings and other electronic footage.
A police officer took a dark gray Samsung tablet, a white Nook notebook with a charger, a black DVR, a black cellphone with a pink cover and a black MSI Dynaudio laptop.
Officers arrested Grider without incident, BPD stated.
CHP noted Grider worked in the Redwood City area in August 2001 during his first assignment as an officer. He was stationed in the Newhall office a year later, and eventually went to the Grapevine Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility in 2003. That was his last assignment before going to Buttonwillow.
You can reach Ishani Desai at 661-395-7417. You can also follow her at @_ishanidesai on Twitter.
