Former D.C. commissioner Leroy Thorpe sues neighbor for 'harassment'

Around 9:30 p.m. one September evening last year, Martin Moulton was engaged in one of his favorite pastimes, cooking.  As he stirred risotto, a knock at the door of his row house disturbed his preparation of an Italian dish.  

Two District of Columbia police officers stood on Moulton’s doorstep.  Because he is an active resident of the Shaw neighborhood community, Moulton recognized one of the officers and greeted him.  The police officer handed him a summons.  Leroy Thorpe--a former D.C. Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner (ANC) who twice had been defeated by Moulton’s friend Kevin Chapple in 2006 (by a five-vote margin) and 2008 (by a 39-vote margin)--was seeking a restraining order against Moulton.  After reading the civil complaint, Moulton’s immediate thoughts were not of fear or revenge, but fiscal virtue: He was upset that Thorpe had used D.C. police resources to serve a frivolous lawsuit.

In 2001, Moulton purchased a home on 5th Street N.W. and established a cordial relationship with then-Commissioner Thorpe, who lives two blocks away.  Moulton noticed that Thorpe only distributed paper flyer notices of ANC meetings.  At an ANC meeting in 2003, Moulton suggested that Thorpe could reach more residents if he published ANC meeting notices via e-mail.  According to Moulton, Thorpe "completely turned" against Moulton following his technological suggestion.

The September 2009 civil complaint filed by Thorpe against Moulton alleged that Moulton had been "stalking" Thorpe for four years.  In support of his application for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), Thorpe claimed:

• "He has e-mailed me at home ignoring my request for him to stop."
•  "He was barred from my civic [East Central Civic Association (ECCA]] meeting via the DC Third District Police in 2008 for harassing me."

•  "He has come to my home in 2009 leaving flyers."

•  "He continues to come up to me at neighborhood public events in 2009 wanting to speak shake hands and take my picture without my consent--while he laughs at me."

Moulton contends that he immediately ceased all contact with Thorpe when it became apparent that such contact was unwanted.  In fact, Mouton says that he has had only five contacts with Thorpe since election day 2008--the day that (according to Moulton) Thorpe requested that Moulton take his photo.  Nevertheless, shaking hands, taking pictures, and smiling are common activities among neighbors attending D.C. civic association meetings. 

Moulton says that initially the police did not "bar" him from Thorpe’s ECCA meeting.  Instead, Moulton voluntarily left the meeting after Thorpe expressed disapproval of Moulton’s dissenting comments and requested that the police remove Moulton from the meeting.  The decision to bar Moulton from the ECCA meetings ultimately rested with the pastor of the church where the ECCA held its meetings.

Moulton is the president of the Convention Center Community Assocation (CCCA).   According to Moulton, on October 19 he decided to ensure that volunteers would not drop flyers announcing CCCA’s activities on Thorpe’s doorstep.  Moulton personally distributed the flyers on Thorpe’s block and skipped Thorpe’s house.  Nevertheless, Thorpe filed a complaint with the D.C. police concerning Moulton’s flyer activity, allegedly claiming that Moulton had violated a restraining order.  However, Judge Robert A. Tignor denied Thorpe’s request for a TRO against Moulton two weeks before Thorpe filed this complaint with the police.

On November 13, Thorpe filed with the court a memorandum in opposition to Moulton’s motion to dismiss.  In the memorandum, Thorpe wrote that he "fears that Mr. Moulton is mentally unstable and is obsessed with Plaintiff Mr. Thorpe."  Thorpe explained that he "is a heterosexual married man" who "fears that Defendant Moulton . . . may cause harm to Plaintiff Thorpe, his wife, daughter and mother."  Thorpe cited additional reasons why the judge should grant a restraining order against Moulton, including allegations that Moulton insulted Thorpe by calling him a "duck," made veiled references to Thorpe’s Muslim name, and participated in the creation of an anti-Thorpe website, www.LeroyThorpe.com.

"God [taught] me that forgiveness is better than revenge and compassion is better than anger." -- Former D.C. police Lt. Mike Smith

Thorpe has complained about www.LeroyThorpe.com before.  In 2003, he filed a complaint with the D.C. police contending that D.C. police Lt. Mike Smith had created that website.  According to Smith, a police investigation of the matter revealed that D.C. resident Nick Keenan had created the website with no involvement by Smith.  Smith adds that Keenan even informed Thorpe of this fact.  Thorpe sued Smith anyway on April 14, 2003, along with Keenan and Mayor Anthony Williams.  According to a review of the case docket, the case is closed.  The website remains active to this day.

In an e-mail sent from his current home in Palm Coast, Florida, Smith sees a silver lining to the episode, explaining it was "really God teaching me that forgiveness is better than revenge and compassion is better than anger."  He adds: "All things work for good for those who love God and so it was when I was transferred away from Mr. Thorpe’s area in Shaw to Logan Circle. . . I made many more new friends who I consider my family."   

On November 16, Judge Neal E. Kravitz dismissed Thorpe’s complaint against Moulton, but instructed Thorpe to file a legally-viable complaint no later than December 11.  That deadline passed without any new complaint being filed by Thorpe.

On November 20, D.C. police arrested Thorpe for the misdemeanor charge of making a false report to the police.  Magistrate Judge Diana Harris Epps released Thorpe pending final disposition of the criminal matter, but, ironically, ordered Thorpe to "not assault, threaten, stalk, harass or physically abuse M. Moulton. Stay away at least 10 feet from M. Moulton."  Even as Thorpe’s demand for a restraining order against Moulton withered on the civil docket, a D.C. judge issued a restraining order protecting Moulton from Thorpe.  A status conference concerning the false police report charge against Thorpe is scheduled for February 3rd. 

"Some people have a vested interest in keeping things the way they are by blocking new ideas and concepts." -- Long View Gallery Owner William Waybourn

The primary effect of Thorpe’s pending lawsuit against Moulton has been legal fees totaling $7,000 (and counting), a considerable sum compared with Thorpe’s $160 filing fee.  In recognition of Moulton’s civic contributions to the community, on January 19th, local residents held a fundraiser at the Long View Gallery (1234 Ninth Street N.W. ) to offset Moulton’s legal fees.  Approximately 60 benefactors contributed a total of $4,000. 

In an interview, Moulton stated that he was "thrilled and deeply grateful for the tremendous support" from the community.  However, he also posted a message on the "Shaw Neighborhood" Yahoo! Group listserv stating that "some supporters have experienced some odd or offensive reactions from others in the community as a result of their support for me. I am very sorry that has been happening and will avoid publicizing supporters names hence forward."  Long View Gallery owner William Waybourn lamented that the community may need to hold another fundraiser to oppose Thorpe’s "ridiculous lawsuit."

Thorpe declined to grant an interview, referring all questions to his attorney, who did not respond to a phone call and e-mail requesting comment.  However, Thorpe did e-mail a copy of an order issued by the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance (OCF) admonishing Commissioner Chapple (and by association Moulton) for a technical violation of D.C. law, commenting "you want to write about something--write about this."  Chapple and Moulton had established a community magazine and solicited advertisements using the name of Chapple’s district, ANC 2C-02.  The OCF suspended the mandatory $2,000 fine for Chapple because "the overriding sole purpose of this venture was ‘to promote the civic, cultural, and social interests of residents of the District of Columbia and especially the residents within the Shaw community.’"

Moulton supporter Waybourn explains Thorpe’s use of the courts, police, and regulatory agencies with the observation that "some people have a vested interest in keeping things the way they are by blocking new ideas and concepts."  From Moulton’s viewpoint, the advocacy of ideas relating to issues in his neighborhood has led to expensive legal fees, administrative headaches, and burnt risotto.