Nether Providence police sergeant resigns after being charged with assaulting a female relative while she was sleeping

A 24-year veteran of the Nether Providence Police Department resigned this week after he was accused of sexually assaulting a female relative while she was passed out at a party.

Detective Sgt. Michael Erickson, 51, was charged Monday with indecent assault of an unconscious person, according to court records. He was released on $200,000 unsecured bail and resigned from the department the same day.

Erickson’s attorney, Vincent DiFabio, did not immediately return a request for comment. Attempts to reach Erickson were unsuccessful.

Prosecutors from the state Attorney General’s Office were contacted by the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office on June 12 after the woman reached out to them, according to the affidavit of probable cause for Erickson’s arrest. The local prosecutors referred the case to state prosecutors to avoid a potential conflict of interest.

Two witnesses told the Attorney General’s Office that they attended a party with the woman at Erickson’s house in Aston on June 1, the affidavit said. During the party, they said, she went inside the home and fell asleep on a bed. Later, they said, the witnesses and Erickson went into that room to watch television, and the witnesses said they saw Erickson putting his hand on and rubbing the woman’s genitals above her clothing.

The witnesses said they told Erickson to stop, and then awakened the woman so they all could leave.

The woman later told police she had been drinking at the party before falling asleep and had no memory of what Erickson allegedly did to her, or of how she had gotten home that evening.

Afterward, Erickson sent text messages to the two witnesses, apologizing for his actions, which he said were “completely inexcusable,” according to a reproduction of the text included in the affidavit.

“I am truly sorry for everything, and me being blackout drunk doesn’t make an excuse,” he wrote, adding that he had “zero recollection of anything.”

Erickson sent a similar email to the woman’s husband, the affidavit said, blaming his behavior on “an alcohol problem of several years and mental health issues.”

In a statement Tuesday, Nether Providence Police Chief David Splain said that the incident occurred while Erickson was off-duty, and that the department had no role in investigating the alleged assault.

Splain said he was first notified in July that prosecutors were investigating Erickson and was told earlier this month that he would face criminal charges.

Erickson submitted his resignation Monday. It was unclear if he had been working for the department between July and this week. Splain declined to comment further.