New Orleans officer accused of raping girl

A former New Orleans police officer with a history of behavioral complaints who was dispatched to help a 14-year-old rape victim get medical attention last year later raped her himself, the girl’s mother claimed in a lawsuit.

After he took the girl to a hospital for evaluation, the officer, Rodney Vicknair, groomed the girl for months before he eventually sexually assaulted and raped her, according to the lawsuit.

In May, Vicknair, a 13-year veteran of the New Orleans Police Department, was dispatched to the girl’s home to drive her, accompanied by her mother, to Children’s Hospital New Orleans for a forensic medical examination.

In the waiting room, Vicknair showed the girl photos of another girl, posing in bikinis and lingerie, who he said was his 16-year-old daughter, the lawsuit says.

After the hospital visit, Vicknair remained a near-constant presence in the girl’s life. The lawsuit claims that from June through September, he called the girl almost every day, frequently visited her at home and asked that she meet him outside in his car, under the pretense of acting as her mentor.

The lawsuit says that he groped her multiple times — including once when he entered her home at night and shined a flashlight in her face to wake her up. On two occasions he used his fingers to rape her while in his police vehicle, once when its doors were locked, the lawsuit says; both times he was armed.

After complaints were made to two agencies, the lawsuit says, Vicknair was arrested and charged with sexual battery, indecent behavior with a juvenile and malfeasance in office.