The Edmond Community Policing Board’s ongoing discussions about sex crime response got heated at its Nov. 20 meeting when member Jason “Jay” Alsup suggested the topic was receiving too much attention, a remark that drew audible disgust from the audience.
Alsup, a Ward 3 appointee, resigned from the board Dec. 12 and did not return NonDoc’s request for comment about his departure, which comes amid heightened scrutiny over how the Edmond Police Department handles sexual crime investigations.
“Effective immediately, I resign from the Community Police Advisory Board. I left a message for Councilman Preston Watterson advising him of my decision as well,” Alsup wrote in an email to the board’s chairwoman, which was forwarded to other city officials.
Watterson, who represents Ward 3 in Edmond, offered a statement through city spokesman Bill Begley.
“This was a personal decision and I thank Mr. Alsup for his willingness to serve,” Watterson said.
Moriah Norman, who has driven conversation about how EPD handles sexual assault and battery cases after her own experience, spoke to the board again at its November meeting and called for Alsup to step down after his comments.
On Dec. 12, Norman also posted a summary of Alsup’s remarks on Facebook about two hours before Alsup emailed his resignation. Although she only learned of his decision Monday, Norman called it “a benefit to the community.”
“Edmond residents deserve to have people that are committed to hearing and responding compassionately to issues brought before the board,” Norman said Dec. 29. “Victims deserve better.”
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At the November board meeting, Chairwoman Daniela Deuel proposed the idea of coordinating an event to raise awareness about community resources available to those who experience sexual assault.
While Alsup said he recognized the educational value of an event, he suggested it might have limited appeal.
“People are not going to be interested if they’re not victimized,” Alsup said. “Once they’re victimized, then they’re going to want to know everything. So I think just having the information available somewhere so that people can access it, to me, would be the best utilization of resources.”
Mayoral appointee Lakresha Ferguson responded to Alsup.
“Well, yes, not everybody’s a victim. Usually most of the time somebody knows somebody who might be afraid to come [forward] by themselves. So possibly having something in-person is a supportive aspect. Education hurts nobody. [It can] bring another level of awareness, no different from our community conversation,” Ferguson said. “It’s just another opportunity to show support within the community. This is obviously something that has shown up, and it’s very important for men and women. Education, again, never hurts anything.”
Deuel also said there is value to raising awareness about resources proactively.
“There are so many different resources that are afforded all of us, but oftentimes you don’t know what those are until after the fact,” Deuel said. “You know, example, (…) until you are hungry and need food assistance. Do you know what the food assistance programs that are available to you are? Do you know that the YWCA has a victim’s advocate that can come meet with you?”
Further into the Nov. 20 discussion, Alsup voiced his desire for the Edmond Community Policing Board to examine other issues in the community.
“Can I just add two cents of a completely different perspective? Not to diminish the severity of sexual assault or sexual assault investigations, but why are we focusing on this as a priority, as opposed to so many other things that go on in our community?” Alsup asked.
The question drew chatter from the roughly two-dozen audience members.
“You just said that out loud?” one person asked.
Another asked with exasperation: “You’re on the board?”
“Really?” said a third.
Alsup tried to defend his question.
“I’m not saying it’s not important. I’m just saying, is this the only thing that we should be focusing on?” Alsup asked. “There’s a lot of other issues that are extremely important as well to other people who have been victims of burglary.”
Norman chimed in from the audience.
“Welcome to Edmond, everybody,” she said.
Deuel emphasized the importance of listening to residents who bring their concerns to the board, no matter the issue.
“If it’s a community concern, then I think we need to take that concern seriously. And if there is a place for us to elevate that in a public way, then we should do it,” Deuel said. “Not every item that is brought to our attention is necessarily going to be something that we’re going to do a big event for. But I do think that it is important to say that this is way more than your car getting stolen. This is your body being stolen from you.”
Alsup said he understood there can be “a lot of emotion” that goes into the topic.
“There’s a lot of emotion that goes into a lot of other things, too. Other people who have been victimized in other ways demand as equal justice as anybody else does,” Alsup said. “The whole point of this board is to be representative of the entire community, of everybody who is going through difficult times in everything, every aspect of their lives, not just this one thing. I just don’t want to focus on one thing and forget everything else.”
If there were to be an event raising awareness about resources for sexual assault victims, Alsup made recommendations of people he would like to have on a panel.
“And if I could just add some people to this discussion that we’re going to have, it’s somebody from the district attorney’s office who prosecutes the bad guys. They’re going to have a huge part in this whole thing about the best way to prepare a case so that it’s winnable, and so that the people who are committing the crimes are held accountable for what they’re doing,” Alsup said. “And then get somebody from [the Oklahoma Department of Corrections] who could be instrumental in giving counseling to the bad guys once they’re in jail. Because the last thing you want to do is have a repeat offender get out out of jail [who] never had any kind of counseling or anything like that at all, so that they’re not repeat offenders.”
Edmond Police Chief J.D. Younger attended the Nov. 20 meeting, as he had for at least the board’s prior two meetings. Asked about Alsup’s Dec. 12 resignation, he declined to discuss specific board members or topics, but he praised the board’s mission and purpose.
“I would offer my appreciation for all residents who volunteer for city boards and commissions,” Younger said by email. “The Community Policing Board is especially important in building and maintaining public safety services designed to meet the Edmond community’s expectations. I appreciate the CPB providing a forum to identify areas of exceptional performance and opportunities for continuous improvement.”
Norman said improvement is needed.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Alsup’s conduct is only a small part of a broader problem within Edmond culture and the Edmond Police Department,” Norman said Dec. 29. “I hope Mr. Alsup will take time to educate himself on sexual assault and use that knowledge to make informed statements in the future.”
‘What does a woman have to endure for police to act?’
During the portion of the Nov. 20 meeting reserved for citizen comments, Norman spoke to the board for the third time about her experience reporting a sex crime to EPD.
“I have personally faced a secondary victimization by this police department,” Norman said. “I would like to state that I’m not here because I feel comfortable coming forward. So please, no one pat yourself on the back thinking you’ve made speaking up an easy experience. I am speaking up because I won’t allow this police department to continue victimizing the women of this city.”
Norman said Alsup should step down from his position as a board member.
“You all heard out of the mouth of a member of this board why women don’t come forward,” Norman said. “If you don’t want to hear from members of this community, don’t be on the policing board.”
Pastor Derrick Scobey and his wife Angela, along with a handful of supporters, also attended the meeting to discuss their experience reporting alleged sexual battery by a store employee in Edmond.
Angela Scobey also shared her experience reporting to EPD with the board.
“On Nov. 8, I walked into White House Black Market at Spring Creek for a simple exchange,” she said. “While trying on clothing, the store manager walked behind me and, with an open palm, stroked my left buttock from top to bottom, while saying, ‘You are curvy.’ Mind you, that store manager had just commented, ‘People pay for that.’ I immediately frowned, pushed his hand away and stepped forward. Despite rejecting that touch, he then reached forward and started trying to adjust my shirt.”
Angela Scobey recounted her conversation with the responding EPD officer.
“The officer asked, Did I think it was sexual? I said, ‘I don’t think so.’ Because I didn’t know that Oklahoma law defines touching someone’s hips without their consent as sexual in nature. I didn’t know that legal terminology,” Angela Scobey said. “I only knew it was wrong, invasive and humiliating. Victims are not legal experts. We rely on the police to know the law and act accordingly. Despite the touching, despite my rejection of it, despite the witness, despite the law, the officer left without making an arrest.”
Derrick Scobey, whose response to the situation has drawn allegations of transphobia, also spoke to the Edmond Community Policing Board on Nov. 20.
“She was the victim of what we understand to have been sexual battery. A white man who identifies as a woman was the perpetrator,” he said. “My point is simply clarity, not commentary on anyone’s identity. No arrests were made other than mine.”
Because he went to the store and remained there telling other customers about his wife’s allegation, Derrick Scobey ultimately was arrested for trespassing by EPD officer Kyle Factor. After a lengthy conversation with Factor in which he told the officer to “Google” him, Scobey said he would leave unless he was arrested.
Ultimately, Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna reviewed the allegation against the store manager and announced Nov. 26 that she she had determined “the evidence does not meet the legal requirements to file felony criminal charges.” Similarly, on Dec. 18, Scobey posted a Facebook photo showing that the City of Edmond’s misdemeanor trespassing charge against him had been dismissed.
At the Nov. 20 policing board meeting, Scobey suggested race was a factor in how he, his wife and the store manager were treated.
“I believe if I were the pastor of the First Baptist Church, Nov. 8 would have unfolded very differently and an arrest would have been made, and it would have been of the man that assaulted my wife, especially if he had been Black,” Scobey said. “This isn’t speculation. It is data combined with lived experience.”
Derrick Scobey told the board he had been researching Edmond’s crime statistics.
“I recently analyzed 241 state-level arrests by Edmond police from August 2024 to [November 2025], and this data reveals a crisis. Black residents make up 5 percent of Edmond’s population, but they represent — we — (represent) 33 percent of state-level arrest,” Derrick Scobey said. “Black residents are arrested at 6.52 times their share of the population. The national average is 2.6. Edmond’s disparity is more than double the already troubling national rate. If arrests were proportional to population, there would be 12 arrests during that time of Black people. There were 80.”
Angela Scobey also questioned why an arrest of the store manager was not made.
“I must ask: If stroking a woman’s buttocks in a fitting room does not lead to an arrest in Edmond, what exactly does? What does a woman have to endure for police to act?” Angela Scobey said.
Derrick Scobey told the board that Younger, EPD’s chief, wanted the alleged offender arrested. Asked after the meeting about Derrick Scobey’s comment, Younger told NonDoc he wanted justice to be supported.
“What I want is for the justice system to work the way it’s supposed to. And I think that’s the same, not only this particular incident, with any incident. So yeah, I won’t offer specific comment to an incident, but I want justice to be supported,” Younger said.
During the Nov. 20 meeting, Derrick Scobey said he would pursue other options if Behenna chose not to charge the store manager.
“I can assure you that if the madame DA’s office does not file, Chief (Younger), I’m going to state Attorney General Gentner Drummond. Because I’m not letting go,” Derrick Scobey said.
On Nov. 26, Angela Scobey wrote a statement on Facebook responding to Behenna’s decision not to charge the store manager.
“I also want to acknowledge our long-standing support for Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna. We have collaborated with her office on community events and initiatives that serve the people of Oklahoma County,” Angela Scobey wrote. “Although I disagree with the decision in this case, I understand that legal perspectives may differ, and I respect her position. I choose to move forward without resentment, continuing to value her dedication to community.”
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‘As the leader of the department, that starts with you’
November’s meeting of the Edmond Community Policing Board included discussion of sex crimes on the agenda so board members could form responses to what had been discussed at their September meeting when EPD Lt. Mark Oak spoke. Oak mentioned an error made during the sexual assault training block of an EPD police academy, and Younger provided more clarity about that situation during the November meeting.
“Not to get too deep into the statute, but what the statute requires on evidence-based sexual assault and sexual violence training is that a portion of the hours be co-presented with a certified sexual assault response service provider,” Younger said. “For the City of Edmond, our partner in those presentations is and always has been the Oklahoma City YWCA. The Oklahoma City YWCA has presented in every academy that we’ve had, with the exception of the one we’re talking about, the 25-11 (academy).”
Younger said a request had been made to the YWCA for the training, but a communication failure led to the absence of a representative. The cadets for the 2025-11 academy took the course, but because the YWCA representative was not present, it did not meet the statutory standard. Younger said that when his department discovered the error, leaders reached out to the YWCA and additional training hours were provided.
Sami Harp, an advocate with the Oklahoma City YWCA, was asked to share about the services provided to survivors by the nonprofit.
“What this looks like initially, for sexual assault survivors, they have the opportunity to receive a SANE exam. SANE stands for Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. And as advocates, we have the ability to go to those exams and provide support throughout that exam process,” Harp said. “We can be with them during the exam and ensure that they are connected to resources (…) and they are aware of what that process looks like and what their options are.”
Harp responded to questions from board members and explained how advocates support victims while remaining separate from the justice system.
“Further on, the YWCA, our sexual assault team, provides court advocacy. We can accompany clients to court for the same purpose of providing support and advocacy as they’re navigating that process,” Harp said. “We can also provide them with resources and referrals to things like counseling, support group, medical resources and then just further case management. A lot of that looks like, again, just being with them through that process. Our job is never to interact or interfere with the criminal justice side of things. We kind of exist parallel to that process to provide emotional support.”
Younger said sex crimes are unique in the way they are perceived by the community.
“Whenever we start discussing procedures, I think we really run a risk of minimizing or diminishing the people that have experienced victimization,” Younger said. “Regardless of what you end up discussing here or my comments, we need to keep in mind that there are real-deal victims. The victimization didn’t stop when the incident stopped, it continues.”
On the flip side, Younger said, he heads an organization made up of 180 humans.
“We make mistakes every day. I tell the people I work with, ‘I don’t think our community is asking for perfection, I think they’re asking for accountability.’ And so when we identify things that can be done better, it’s our responsibility to identify what was the failure point,” Younger said. “That doesn’t mean there won’t be future failures. It just means take serious what has occurred and rectify it and mitigate it the best you can.”
Norman approached Younger after the meeting adjourned to ask for discussions to continue.
“My end game is not revenge,” Norman told Younger. “It’s not to take out my anger on you. It’s to bring awareness and to make change so that it doesn’t continue to happen. That is my heart behind why I keep speaking out. I don’t like talking about this. It’s not fun, it’s not pleasant. It puts me down for days after I speak about it. But clearly there needs to be some change here, and you, as the leader of the department, that starts with you.”
(Correction: This article was updated at 10:10 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 30, to correct a reference to a Facebook post.)
