A Vancouver man appeared in Clark County Superior Court on Wednesday on accusations that he forced a 14-year-old girl to prostitute herself by making her walk Portland’s busy 82nd Avenue and posting explicit photos of her on Craigslist.
Zachary D. Lail, 19, faces charges of commercial sexual abuse of a minor and sexual exploitation of a minor at his Sept. 12 arraignment. Deputy Prosecutor Abbie Bartlett said her office may also charge him with second-degree rape and third-degree rape of a child. He also may face additional charges in Portland. Judge Suzan Clark held him on $100,000 bail and appointed Vancouver attorney Therese Lavallee to defend him.
Victim a runaway
Lail allegedly picked up the 14-year-old, who was a runaway, and her friend in Vancouver and trafficked them to Portland. He forced the victim to prostitute herself by making her walk Portland’s busy 82nd Avenue, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in court.
The next day, he returned with the girls to the home he shares with his father in the 14800 block of Northeast 78th Street near Heritage High School, the affidavit said. The father apparently was not at home.
