Lawmaker says incident didn’t involve sex

OLYMPIA – State Rep. Richard Curtis, the alleged victim of an extortion attempt by a man in a hotel during a trip to Spokane last week, on Monday denied reports that sex played a role in the confrontation.

“I am not gay,” Curtis, R-LaCenter, told the (Vancouver) Columbian newspaper Monday afternoon. “I have not had sex with a guy.”

Curtis told the newspaper that he would release a statement today.

“It’s been a rough week,” he said.

Curtis, 48, who represents a rural legislative district north of Vancouver, was allegedly involved in a confrontation Wednesday or Thursday with a man at the Davenport Tower. Curtis was one of numerous lawmakers in town last week for a three-day GOP retreat.

Spokane police on Monday were still investigating what happened. They have executed at least two search warrants, one for video surveillance at the Davenport Tower, another at a location that police spokeswoman Jennifer DeRuwe wouldn’t disclose.

The search warrants were expected to be made public Monday, but police later decided to withhold them until they finish collecting evidence and taking statements from witnesses.

How and why the two men met remains unclear, and no one has been charged with a crime.

Although Curtis has spoken with the Columbian newspaper, he has not returned repeated e-mails or phone messages from The Spokesman-Review, which broke the story Sunday night. His brief comments to the Columbian were his first public statements on the matter.

“I committed no crime,” he told Columbian editor Lou Brancaccio. “I did not solicit sex. I was trying to help someone out.” He told the paper he’d say more once he’d talked to his attorney.

DeRuwe said the initial complaint to police suggested prostitution may have been involved. But after further investigation throughout the weekend, she said Monday, without elaborating, “It does not appear that prostitution was involved.”

Curtis apparently sought help initially from the Washington State Patrol.

“To my understanding, the initial contact for assistance was made to one of our sergeants in southwest Washington,” WSP spokesman Capt. Jeff DeVere said Monday.

The sergeant discussed it with his superiors, he said, who referred the matter to Spokane police.

It’s not that unusual for lawmakers to contact the WSP about security matters, said Capt. DeVere. Troopers provide security for the governor and the state Capitol campus. When former state Rep. Don Cox, R-Colfax, got a death threat three years ago for co-sponsoring a bill to allow college admissions offices to consider a student’s race, it was the WSP that tracked down the caller and paid him a visit.

“It depends on the situation,” said DeVere. Typically, he said, local police agencies have priority on a local case, unless they ask for assistance.

Asked if hotel security had intervened, Davenport Hotel spokesman Tom McArthur said he couldn’t comment.

“That would be behavior of a guest, and even if I did know, I couldn’t say,” he said.