Murray Accuser Wants Millions From City of Seattle

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray and the man accusing him of sexual assault, Delvonn Heckard.

In the latest development in the Seattle Mayor Ed Murray Scandal where the out gay mayor of Seattle has been accused of sexual abuse of male minors in separate incidents dating back to the 1980s in both Portland, Oregon and in Seattle, the principle accuser has filed a claim against the City of Seattle seeking up to $3 million dollars for damages for harm. 46 year old Delvonn Heckard and his team of attorneys claim Mr. Heckard’s reputation has been harmed by Murray “utilizing and abusing his position of power” as mayor of Seattle and for accusing Heckard and his legal team for engaging in an anti-gay/right wing conspiracy to discredit Murray and destroy his political career.

Heckard, who is now an out gay man, originally filed a civil suit against Murray earlier this year claiming Murray sexually abused Heckard, then a 15 year old struggling with addiction and family instability after the two met on a city bus and subsequently met for paid sex acts that continued for several years. As 16 is the age of consent in Washington State, all sexual acts between Murray and Heckard would have been illegal up to the time Heckard turned 16.

Due to public pressure, Murray withdrew from this year’s election where he was seeking a second term. Immediately after Murray announced he would not continue in the election, Heckard’s lawyers announced they were withdrawing the lawsuit, for the time being, while Heckard completed addiction treatment and counseling.

The Seattle Times broke the story on Wednesday evening that Heckard is now pursuing damages from the City of Seattle. Per the Times, if the city denies the claim, Heckard and his attorneys could file suit against the city for those damages after 60 days.

The latest development in the Murray case raises questions for many in the LGBTQ community with some actively siding with the alleged victims and calling for Murray to immediately resign for office while others question the legitimacy of some of these allegations as well as considerable speculation about Heckard and his legal team’s motives.