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Politics & Government

County Sheriff's Deputy Found Guilty of Menacing

Paul Lawrence was convicted of following two 19-year-old women through Metroparks. But he still faces charges of indecent exposure.

Former Cuyahoga County Sheriff's deputy Paul Lawrence was convicted of two counts of menacing Friday in .

Judge Patrick Carroll found the 32-year-old Middleburg Heights man guilty of the charges alleging that Lawrence followed two 19-year-old women at the Cleveland Metroparks' Rocky River Reservation on Aug. 29.

During testimony, the women said Lawrence's blue 2007 Chevrolet Malibu passed them eight times around 3 p.m.

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He faces 30 days in jail for each of the two fourth-degree misdemeanor charges.

But Lawrence's legal troubles aren't over.

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He still faces an indecent exposure charge that alleges that he masturbated in his car at the Cleveland Metroparks' Rocky River Reservation on June 12.

According to a report in the Plain Dealer, Lawrence — a deputy since 2008 — was placed on paid leave from his $45,000-a-year position. 

Friday's trial took place in Lakewood because the incident occurred in a portion of the park in the city. 

Carroll ordered Lawrence to have no contact with the victims.

The other case, stemming from a June 12 incident, alleges that Lawrence was masturbating in a vehicle in a portion of the park in Rocky River. 

He is set to appear for that bench trial in Rocky River Municipal Court on Dec. 12, according to court records.

Carroll sent Friday's conviction to the county probation department for a pre-sentence investigation.

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