MEMPHIS, Tennessee (PNN) - January 22, 2015 - A former Tennessee deputy was sentenced to six years this week for sexually assaulting a domestic violence victim, but he could avoid prison time.
In 2011, Shelby County Sheriff’s Office detective James Bishof, 58, told a 22-year-old woman who was accused of assaulting her boyfriend that he could help her by taking nude photos of any possible injuries.
He convinced the woman to disrobe so he could take photos of her breasts, buttocks and private area in a restroom at the General Investigation Bureau where he worked. He later went to her home and told her to disrobe so he could take more sexually explicit photos. While he was at her home, she also said that he groped her and made sexual advances.
The woman said that she did not feel that she could resist because Bishof had a badge and a gun. The victim’s father later reported the incident to the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office.
Bishof pleaded guilty this week and was sentenced to six years in prison for official oppression and six months on the assault as part of a plea agreement.
But Bishof could avoid jail time if Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee rules during a Feb. 27 hearing that he can serve his sentence on probation. Bishof is also eligible for a diversion program.