By Jim Patten
jpatten@eagletribune.com
October 01, 2008 12:50 am LAWRENCE — Lawrence police Officer Kevin Sledge spent last night in Lawrence General Hospital instead of jail awaiting arraignment on charges he kidnapped and raped a woman while on duty last week. Sledge, 45, a resident of Salem, N.H., was arrested yesterday morning during a traffic stop in Pelham, N.H., and he later complained of chest pains while being taken to Lawrence to be booked at police headquarters. Lawrence police Chief John Romero said Sledge was under police guard at the hospital last night. "The intention is to have a cardiologist examine Sledge in the morning and conduct some medical tests," Romero said last night. "If he is deemed OK to be released, he will likely be arraigned in District Court. If the doctor decides to keep him in the hospital, he will be arraigned at his bedside." Sledge, a 15-year veteran of the Lawrence department, faces charges of rape, kidnapping and indecent assault and battery stemming from a Sept. 26 incident that investigators allege took place while he was on duty and in uniform. Yesterday morning, police obtained warrants for Sledge's arrest on the rape and other charges. But Sledge left his Salem, N.H., home yesterday morning before being informed of the warrants for his arrest, and family members contacted Salem police fearing he might be suicidal. Salem police put out a radio broadcast describing Sledge and the car he was driving, and he was arrested by Pelham police during a traffic stop on Route 38, and also charged with being a fugitive from justice because he was wanted by his own police department. Sledge stood quietly and answered questions from Derry District Court Judge John Coughlin in a barely audible voice during his arraignment on the fugitive from justice charge. Pelham police Lt. Gary Fisher told the judge that Sledge had a criminal record in New Hampshire and asked him to set $50,000 cash bail on Sledge pending his return to Massachusetts. During the proceeding, Sledge agreed to waive rendition and return to Lawrence, where he was to have been booked at the Police Department and then taken to Middleton jail to spend the night prior to his arraignment in Lawrence District Court this morning. But he never made it to the station. En route, Sledge complained of chest pains and was taken to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was to be admitted last night. The charges against Sledge stem from an alleged incident on Sept. 26, when he was assigned to the booking room at the police station. According to information provided by police, Sledge left his post about 2 a.m. without notifying his supervisors, got into his personal vehicle and drove around the city, where he found and picked up an intoxicated woman. He had her get into his vehicle under the guise of helping her and drove to a parking lot adjacent to the police station, where he allegedly sexually assaulted her before leaving her in his car and returning to work, police said. About 4 a.m., the woman, accompanied by a friend, went to the front desk at the police station to report what had happened, setting in motion the investigation. Mayor Michael Sullivan sent a letter to Sledge Monday stating the city's intention to begin dismissal proceedings against him for alleged conduct unbecoming an officer and neglect of duty related to the Sept. 26 incident. Sledge was stripped of his badge and gun last week pending an internal affairs investigation. In 2005, Sledge was arrested at his Salem, N.H., home and his girlfriend was issued a summons to appear in court after they accused each other of assault and battery. At that time he was stripped of his gun and badge and placed on modified duty in the police station, but was eventually returned to duty. In 1999, Sledge was placed on leave after he was charged with raping an ex-girlfriend. He was found not guilty of those charges and returned to duty. And in January 2004, he was placed on administrative leave before pleading guilty in Concord, N.H., District Court to a misdemeanor charge of tampering with a New Hampshire public record. Investigators found he used a fake Lawrence address several years earlier when he got a license to sell cars in New Hampshire. That led to the tampering charge and he was fined $500.
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