Mo. man awarded $16M in sex charges case

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A federal jury awards a Missouri man acquitted of child sex charges $16 million in a lawsuit against his ex-wife and a Lee's Summit police officer.

Theodore W. White Jr. sued the officer, Richard McKinley, over allegations that McKinley made up false child sex charges and violated White's rights.

The Kansas City Star reported on its Web site that on Friday the jury awarded $14 million in actual damages and added $2 million in punitive damages.

McKinley is now married to White's ex-wife, Tina, who is the mother of the alleged victim.

The lawsuit alleged that McKinley, who was the case detective, destroyed evidence and covered up and lied about having an affair with White's then-estranged wife.

White was released from jail in February 2005, after serving five years.

He was tried three times on charges that he molested his stepdaughter. A Jackson County jury eventually acquitted him.

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com