Spokane to pay $300,000 to woman raped by former officer in 2019

Spokane has agreed to pay $300,000 to settle a lawsuit from a woman who was raped by a Spokane Police Department officer in her own home after calling for help in a domestic violence case.

Tatyanna Presnell filed a $1 million claim against the city in 2022 alleging that the police department had ignored “red flags” in former officer Nathan Nash’s behavior leading up to him raping her and another woman in 2019.

A Spokane jury convicted Nash in September 2022 of raping the two women during follow-up visits to assault investigations he responded to while a Spokane Police officer in 2019. Presnell testified at the time that the rape happened when Nash pulled down her pants while looking at her bruises from being beaten by her boyfriend. He was convicted of third-degree rape.

A second woman who doesn’t want to be publicly identified told the jury Nash was looking at a bruise on her leg when he began touching her inappropriately. He then pushed her onto the couch and raped her. He was convicted of second-degree rape with aggravating circumstances for violating the trust she had in him as a law enforcement officer.

Nash argued that the accusations against him were false, made by “a known meth-head” and perpetrated by prosecutors motivated by a “political agenda” and a desire to “destroy my life at the off-chance of trying to convict a cop … .” He was sentenced to at least 14 years in prison and is currently appealing his case.

Presnell’s civil claim alleged the city’s hiring, training and supervision of Nash was inadequate and contributed to her injuries. There were “substantial ‘red flags’ ” the city ignored or failed to investigate, according to the claim.

There were numerous concerns about Nash’s response to domestic violence situations recorded by the police department, according to documents obtained at the time by The Spokesman-Review. Nash also developed a “common practice” of giving out his personal phone number to crime victims, investigators said.

At the time, Presnell said she would be willing to settle the claim for $750,000. On Monday, the city agreed to give her less than half that.

Last month, the city agreed to a settlement of $275,000 with a woman who said she slipped into a grate covering tree roots downtown, suffering severe injuries.

In a brief interview, Jeffry Finer, a local attorney who represented Presnell in her suit, said it was difficult to compare different settlements but added that his client was “glad to have this behind her,” and noted that the city has taken significant steps to prevent future abuse by an officer, including through location technology.