Former State Rep. Perry Hooper Jr. (R-Montgomery) has been charged on one count of first degree sexual abuse, according to the Montgomery Police Department.
The charge was first reported by Alabama Daily News (ADN).
Hooper, a member of the Alabama Republican Party (ALGOP) state executive committee, was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Task Force and is currently being detained in the Montgomery County Detention Facility, the outlet reported.
According to ADN, the Montgomery Police Department advised that the alleged abuse took place on Aug. 16 at the 100 block of Commerce Street in downtown Montgomery.
The county jail’s website shows that Hooper is presently being held on a $15,000 bond.
The Alabama Code states that a person commits the crime of sexual abuse in the first degree if an individual:
- Subjects another person to sexual contact by forcible compulsion; or
- Subjects another person to sexual contact who is incapable of consent by reason of being physically helpless or mentally incapacitated
In the state of Alabama, sexual abuse in the first degree constitutes a Class C felony. ADN noted that Class C felonies are punishable by one to 10 years in prison and fines up to $15,000.
Upon serving in the Alabama Legislature for nearly two decades, Hooper maintained his presence in Alabama’s political arena. He is an active member of the ALGOP and routinely opines on numerous issues in opinion editorials featured on local and statewide news sites.
Hooper partially led former President Donald Trump’s campaign effort in Alabama during the 2016 GOP presidential primary election cycle. The former lawmaker was also an at-large Trump delegate to the Republican National Convention in 2016.
Dylan Smith is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @DylanSmithAL
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