Former Gurnee cop gets prison for molesting girl
A former Gurnee police officer was sentenced to six years in prison Wednesday in a negotiation that covered his child molesting conviction and settled the remaining cases against him.
Jay Simon, 39, was convicted last year of aggravated criminal sexual abuse for molesting an 11-year-old girl during a sleepover at his house in November 2006.
Simon, who served six years as a Gurnee policeman and was honored for his efforts in DUI enforcement, was also awaiting trial on charges he molested a second girl at the same party.
In addition, Simon was charged with pointing a pistol at a Zion man during an argument in March 2007.
After months of negotiations, Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Fred Day and Waukegan defense attorney Douglas Roberts said Wednesday they had reached an agreement on all the outstanding issues facing Simon.
They told Associate Judge Theodore Potkonjak that Simon would agree to serve a six-year prison sentence, out of a maximum of seven, on his aggravated criminal sexual abuse conviction.
In addition, Simon pleaded guilty to aggravated unlawful restraint in the gun incident in exchange for a three-year prison term to be served at the same time as the sex case sentence.
Day agreed to drop a charge of predatory sexual assault of a child on his end of the negotiation, saying the victim in the case had approved the move.
“The victim in this case has moved out of state and is going on with her life,” Day said. “She has no interest in re-opening old wounds through another trial of the defendant.”
Simon resigned his job with the Gurnee police shortly after his September 2010 conviction in the sex case.
He had been held on $1.5 million bail since his arrest in June 2008.