Honey trap

Judge slams gay sex stings by Long Beach police, calling them discriminatory

A Los Angeles County judge on Friday strongly criticized the Long Beach Police Department's practice of conducting sting operations against gay men cruising for companionship, saying the department’s tactics were tantamount to discrimination.

Superior Court Judge Halim Dhanidina made the remarks in Long Beach while invalidating the 2014 arrest of Rory Moroney for lewd conduct and indecent exposure.

Moroney was ensnared by an undercover vice team that had set up a sting operation in a men’s bathroom at Recreation Park in October 2014. After receiving what he believed to be flirtatious signals from an undercover detective, Moroney was arrested for exposing himself, said Bruce Nickerson, his attorney.

The decision in the closely watched case was celebrated by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights activists across Los Angeles County. Many said they were troubled by Long Beach’s tactics. West Hollywood Councilman John Duran, an attorney who is openly gay and served as an expert witness in the case, said the police actions “came out of the era when homosexuality was criminal; this is kind of a leftover from the last century.”