Ex-Pasco councilman found innocent of molesting girl

Former Pasco City Councilman Chi Flores was found innocent of two counts of child molestation this morning.

Flores was accused of molesting a young girl in 2016. The girl told her parents in March 2017.

Franklin County Deputy Prosecutor Maureen Astley argued that the girl’s original story — that Flores only hurt her arm — wasn’t true, and that delayed disclosures weren’t uncommon with young victims.

But Flores’ attorney Scott Johnson argued to jurors that the original story was the truth.

He told jurors that investigators made an assumption “so that all their resources were geared not toward finding the truth, but toward proving child molestation.”

The jury deliberated just a few hours on Friday and Monday before returning their verdict.

Flores, 39, was appointed to the Pasco City Council in late October 2016 but lost his seat in the August 2017 primary, a few months after he was charged. He continued on the council through December.

This story will be updated.

This story was originally published January 22, 2018 at 11:28 AM with the headline "Ex-Pasco councilman found innocent of molesting girl."