Police report reveals details of alleged 2017 sexual assault against Trump defense secretary nominee

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump has named as his pick for secretary of defense, was accused of physically blocking a woman from leaving his hotel room and sexually assaulting her after speaking at a Republican conference there, according to a police report released by the city attorney’s office of Monterey, California on Wednesday night.

In the police report, the woman “remembered saying ‘no’ a lot." Hegseth said the sexual encounter with the unnamed woman, referred to as "Jane Jone," was consensual.  He recalled having a “very clear conversation” with her, who apparently told him she would explain to her husband, who also attended the conference, that she had “fallen asleep on a couch in someone else’s room.” Hegseth said he remembered the woman showing "early signs of regret" about the encounter.

The alleged assault occurred on October 8, 2017. A nurse at the hospital reported it to police four days later. The woman underwent a rape kit exam and turned over the clothes she was wearing on the night of the alleged incident to police. 

Timothy Parlatore, Hegseth’s attorney, told CNN on Wednesday evening that the police report "confirms what I’ve said all along, that the incident was fully investigated, and police found the allegations to be false, which is why no charges were filed.” 

Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for Trump’s transition team, said that "police found the allegations to be false."

She described Hegseth as “a highly-respected Combat Veteran who will honorably serve our country when he is confirmed as the next Secretary of Defense, just like he honorably served our country on the battlefield in uniform.”