Lauderdale Lakes Commissioner Accused of Sexually Assaulting 14-Year-Old Girl

LAUDERDALE LAKES — Lauderdale Lakes Commissioner Easton K. Harrison is accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl after picking her up before school and taking her to a residence, according to a Margate Police investigation that was later referred to the Broward Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit. The allegations, first reported publicly in June, stem from an encounter in 2025 involving Harrison and the teenager. Police records reviewed by local news outlets describe investigators collecting surveillance footage, license-plate reader information, witness statements and cellphone evidence as they sought to corroborate portions of the teenager’s account. Harrison has denied the allegations through his attorney. The records reviewed by The County do not establish that Harrison has been arrested or criminally charged in connection with the allegations. The police report can be viewed here.

According to the investigative report, the teenager told authorities that she encountered Harrison near a Wawa in Coral Springs before school. Harrison allegedly picked her up and drove her to a residence. The teenager alleged that once inside, Harrison sexually assaulted her and later gave her $100 and told her not to tell anyone what happened, according to reporting based on the police records. She was subsequently dropped off and went to school. Days later, she reported the alleged rape to a school guidance counselor. Police records cited by MargateNews.net indicate the school confirmed that the teenager missed the first two class periods that morning. Investigators then began attempting to reconstruct the teenager's movements and determine whether evidence could corroborate her account.

According to the police investigation, surveillance footage from the Wawa showed Harrison arriving in a Nissan, interacting with the teenager and leaving the parking lot with her in the vehicle. Investigators also reviewed automated license-plate reader information. The data reportedly tracked a vehicle matching Harrison's from the Wawa area toward his Lauderdale Lakes residence before the vehicle traveled back toward Coral Springs later that morning. MargateNews.net reported that surveillance footage showed Harrison and the teenager leaving the Wawa at approximately 7:50 a.m. and returning roughly two hours later. A friend of the teenager also identified Harrison as the person she had seen speaking with the girl at the Wawa that morning. Investigators additionally obtained text-message and cellphone evidence while interviewing the teenager, her mother, friends and other witnesses. The evidence described in the police investigation corroborates portions of the teenager's account concerning her movements and contact with Harrison.

The teenager's mother later confronted Harrison about her daughter's allegation, according to the investigative report. She told investigators that she called Harrison and directly accused him of raping her daughter. According to the mother's account documented by police, Harrison ended the call. The mother also told investigators that her husband subsequently spoke with Harrison and that Harrison said he had been “drunk” when he was with the teenager. That account comes from statements attributed to the teenager's mother in the police investigation.

Harrison, through attorney Joshua Danz, denied the teenager's allegations and declined to provide investigators with a statement, according to the police records. Margate detectives eventually referred the investigation to the Broward Sheriff's Office Special Victims Unit. Margate Talk reported that a supplemental police report showed detectives meeting with BSO investigators, turning over the case file, obtaining additional surveillance footage and requesting cellphone-related records. The case was turned over to a BSO detective in June 2026 and the investigation is ongoing. The County has not independently confirmed that prosecutors have filed criminal charges against Harrison.

Harrison currently serves on the Lauderdale Lakes City Commission. The city's official website continues to identify him as Commissioner Easton K. Harrison and describes him as a Broward County native who has spent more than a decade involved in community service and grassroots organizing. He also serves as chairperson of the Lauderdale Lakes Community Redevelopment Agency. The allegations against Harrison remain allegations. No determination of criminal guilt has been made, and Harrison has denied the teenager's account.

The County will update this story as additional information about the investigation becomes available.