A Chicago government official is being charged with having repeated sexual contact with a 16-year-old lifeguard. The administrator is 32 years old. This is the latest in an evolving scandal involving sexual misconduct against Chicago parks lifeguards, including allegations of sexual abuse and sexual assault. The park official will face two felony counts of criminal sexual assault and abuse of a minor victim. The employee quit his job after he was confronted with allegations of misconduct. He is the fourth park employee to resign over allegations of sexual misconduct this year.
The Bond Hearing
During the defendant’s bond hearing, which was set at $250,000, the attorney moved to reduce the bond amount to a tenth of that number or $25,000. In cases like this, it is typical for the prosecution to move for a very high bond amount. The defense moves to reduce the bond amount to something that is within the defendant’s means. The defense mentions specific aspects of the defendant’s life. This can include the fact that they have no criminal record, are gainfully employed, and have ties to the community. In this case, the prosecution responded to the bond reduction motion by reminding the court that the defendant knew that the victim was underage. Of course, this is simply an element of the crime they have to prove. You must knowingly have sex with someone who is considered a minor. A minor cannot dupe you into having sex by misrepresenting their age. Bond was not, however, reduced in this case. Nonetheless, the judge found that the defendant presented a “clear and present danger” to the community.
Context
The biggest thing to emerge from these cases will be a civil suit filed on behalf of several female lifeguards against the city for failing to protect them from sexual harassment. All employers have a duty of care, be they McDonald’s or the City of Chicago’s Parks Department. When they fail in that duty of care and create a culture where female teenagers are subjected to sexual harassment, misconduct, rape, and worse, then ultimately, the fault for these crimes lies on the employer. They created an environment that was unsafe for their female employees because they benefited from that arrangement. The man who is now facing sexual assault charges was considered among the highest supervisors in the department.
To make matters worse, the sexual misconduct continued to occur even after it was reported to officials and disciplinary action was taken against him. That means that the employer placed their employees in harm’s way knowing that active allegations against the man were already being handled.
The incident came to light after the girl came out about the accusations to her parents. She was taken to the hospital where a rape kit was administered. The DNA will match the defendant’s. The defendant will not be able to raise a consent defense to these charges as the girl was a minor.
Talk to a Chicago Criminal Defense Attorney
If you are facing criminal charges in the City of Chicago, you will need to quickly find representation. An attorney can help you control the narrative, limit your obligation to the state, and force the prosecution to prove every element of the crime. Call David Freidberg today at (312) 560-7100 and we can begin preparing your defense immediately.