SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane City Council approved a settlement Monday night in a lawsuit filed by a woman who was sexually assaulted by a Spokane police officer.
Former Spokane police officer, Nathan Nash, was found guilty of second-degree rape and third-degree rape and was sentenced to 14 years to life in prison in 2022. The charges stem from separate incidents in which Nash raped two women while on duty in 2019.
A survivor of one of those sexual assaults, Tatyanna Presnell, took legal action against the City of Spokane in December 2022. Court documents say she was seeking damages due to the “profound emotional impact, the breach of faith and the sense of betrayal by personnel hired to serve and protect.”
The lawsuit also said the city's "hiring, training, and supervision of Patrolman Nash was inadequate and was a proximate cause of my injuries." The claim goes on to state there were substantial "red flags" in Nash's conduct that were "ignored or failed in the exercise of supervisory control."
All 7 councilmembers voted to approve the $300,000 settlement with Presnell.
Presnell spoke at Nash’s sentencing, stating in part, "There is a part of me that I won't be able to get back because you stole it from me. But, starting today, right now, I am rising out of the ashes and becoming a survivor and taking back my life."
Nash is appealing his case to the Washington State Court of Appeals. He’s currently housed in the Airway Heights Corrections Center.
Editor's Note: Normally, KREM 2 does not identify victims of sexual assault. But Tatyanna Presnell agreed to be filmed and have her name published during Nash's sentencing in 2022 because she said it was a way for her to begin to move forward.
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