Cop sexually assaulted woman during his first solo shift, feds say. He’s prison-bound

A former police officer convicted of sexually assaulting a woman during his first solo shift will now spend decades in prison, federal prosecutors said.

Jeffrey Scott Smith, who worked with the Savanna Police Department in Oklahoma, was also found guilty of turning off his body camera before the alleged assault, according to court documents.

Smith, 35, will now spend 40 years in federal prison, according to a March 11 news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

McClatchy News reached out to the Savanna Police Department and an attorney representing Smith but did not immediately receive a response.

Prosecutors said Smith was hired in June 2022 and completed his training Oct. 28. He was working his first solo shift on Nov. 2 when he pulled over a man for speeding.

While interviewing the man and his girlfriend, who was in the car with him, Smith began asking questions about the couple’s relationship, according to the court documents. He learned she danced at a Tulsa gentleman’s club.

Smith searched the couple’s car and belongings, finding a pre-rolled marijuana cigarette in the woman’s purse, prosecutors said. Having already turned off his body camera, Smith then deactivated his dashboard camera and ordered the woman into his vehicle, according to court records.

With her boyfriend in their car, the woman was asked “inappropriate questions” about her job, prosecutors wrote.

“The Defendant then looked down at the marijuana cigarette in his hand and told (the victim) he was trying to figure out what he was going to do with her,” according to the court documents. “(The victim) was confused over what the Defendant was asking her, and worried that the Defendant was about to rape or kill her.”

Smith began to kiss the woman before groping her, prosecutors said. He also grabbed her hand, “putting it on top of his erect, but clothed, penis” in an attempt to have her masturbate him, according to authorities.

The officer then reached inside the woman’s pants and touched her, court documents show. The encounter lasted for around 17 minutes.

“He touched me!” the victim screamed through a phone as she called her mother about the incident, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors called Smith’s behavior “egregious.” U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson said in a news release Smith’s actions “soiled the reputation of the law enforcement community.”

“The Defendant took advantage of his very first opportunity to exploit his power and position as a police officer to isolate and sexually assault a teenage victim,” prosecutors said.

Smith was found guilty March 6, 2024, becoming the first person in the United States to be convicted under the 2022 Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, according to a Department of Justice news release.

The act added upgraded penalties for sexual misconduct convictions.

“Sexual assaults perpetrated by police officers are heinous crimes and a disgraceful breach of the public trust in law enforcement,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said at the time. “We acknowledge the victim’s courage in coming forward and immediately reporting this abuse, and for her strength as she testified in trial.”

Savanna is about a 135-mile drive southeast from Oklahoma City.

This story was originally published March 12, 2025 at 9:25 AM with the headline "Cop sexually assaulted woman during his first solo shift, feds say. He’s prison-bound."