Ex-Cop Sentenced To 70 Years For Molesting Teen Girl While On The Job

A former Texarkana Texas Police Department officer was sentenced Friday to 70 years in prison after a jury found him guilty of seven felonies tied to his sexual abuse of a teen girl during Explorers Program ridealongs in 2024.

Zackary Taylor Gilley, 34, was convicted Thursday of two counts of sexual assault of a child, one count of child grooming, three counts of indecency with a child by contact and one count of indecency with a child by exposure after several days of testimony.

The jury set his punishment at 20 years on each of the two sexual assault counts, 20 years on one count of indecency by contact, 19 years on each of the other two indecency by contact counts, 10 years for indecency by exposure and 10 years for child grooming. Jurors also levied the maximum fine on every count, a total of $70,000.

District Judge John Tidwell ordered some of the terms to run consecutively, giving Gilley a total sentence of 70 years. He will be eligible for parole after serving 35 years.

Tidwell ordered Gilley into custody immediately after the verdict Thursday. He had been free on a $600,000 bond since the day after his arrest in June 2025 and is now being held in the Bowie County jail.

Gilley abused the girl while she rode along with him on patrol as a member of the Explorers Program, which is designed to encourage teens to consider careers in law enforcement.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Gilley began grooming the girl in early 2024, telling her he had a “crush” on her and making her “pinky swear” not to tell. The misconduct escalated from there to hand holding and kissing and eventually sexual assault, affidavits said.

The girl had wanted to become a police officer but lost all interest in the profession after her experience with Gilley, according to a federal lawsuit filed by her mother against Gilley, the city of Texarkana, Texas, and police department leadership. The suit accuses Gilley’s supervisors of missing “red flags,” including his stated preference for having the girl ride along with him to the exclusion of other Explorers.

The civil lawsuit remains pending.

Gilley is represented by Texarkana attorney Jeff Harrelson. Bowie County District Attorney-elect Kelley Crisp and Assistant District Attorney Bradley Akins prosecuted the case.