07/26/2021 - Man arrested After Contacting Two 13-Year-Old Girls Tigard Police Department
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� MEDIA RELEASE
13125 SW Hall Boulevard I Tigard, Oregon 97223 I www.tigard-or.gov/police
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE I July 26, 2021
Contact:
Kelsey Anderson, Public Information Officer
Tigard Police Department
Phone: 971-708-2921
Email: Kelsey.Anderson@tigard-or.gov
Man Arrested After Contacting Two 13-Year-Old Girls
On Saturday, July 24th around 5:30 p.m. officers responded to a call of a man following two
13-year-old girls as they were walking in downtown Tigard. The girls reported they were
walking on SW Main Street when a man began riding his bicycle
behind them and followed them for 10-15 minutes. During that time,
they said he asked if they "had weed" or wanted any, told them they
were pretty and at one point, got close enough to touch one of the
girls on the back of her leg.
The girls did the right thing and called 911 to ask for help. Responding
officers found the man, who was later identified as Deshon Pratt, 27,
outside a business in the 11900 block of SW Pacific Highway. He was
arrested at the scene and charged with stalking, third-degree sex
abuse and harassment.
Deshon Pratt's booking photo.
We'd like to applaud these girls for how they handled this situation.
Parents, please take this opportunity to have a conversation with your own kids about what
they should do if a similar thing were to happen. Teach your kids to:
• Be alert and aware in public to identify potential dangers.
• Avoid texting and distractions while out.
• Trust their intuition and act on it.
• Be assertive. Kids need to build confidence to say 'no' or may need to be rude to avoid
an uncomfortable situation.
• Ask other adults for help, whether that is a police officer, store clerk, bus driver, postal
worker, teacher or mentor.
• Call 911 when someone is doing something that makes them concerned for their safety.
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