Teachers charged with failing to report suspected sex abuse

Three Lake County teachers are facing misdemeanor charges alleging they failed to report a Gavin School District 37 instructor accused of molesting a student.

Arrest warrants were issued Thursday for John Keehan, 40, of Elgin; April Courtney, 34, of Wauconda; and Michael Lanners, 38, of Lake Villa. Court records show the arrest warrants are for $50,000, meaning each will need to post $5,000 to go free while their cases are pending.

Lake County State's Attorney Mike Nerheim said Courtney and Lanners have been taken into custody by Lake County authorities. Keehan remained at large Thursday night, he said.

Nerheim would not comment about the charges until after the third arrest is made.

All three are charged with failure to report child abuse. If found guilty, each could be sentenced up to a year in jail, though court supervision, probation and fines also are possible.

The charges stem from allegations the teachers failed to report suspicions that Gavin Middle School teacher Michael Vucic was sexually abusing a student. Vucic, 41, of Lake Forest, is charged with five counts of predatory criminal sexual assault and five counts of criminal sexual assault alleging he had sexual relations with a middle-school student under the age of 13. Police said the girl no longer attends the school.

Keehan, a social studies teacher, and Courtney, who taught math, were suspended with pay from Gavin in October.

Lanners' link to Gavin was unclear Thursday night.

Vucic, who taught social studies at Gavin for 18 years before the accusations surfaced, fled to Europe in August, police said. He was arrested Sept. 15 in Bosnia-Herzegovina and remains in custody pending extradition to the U.S.

Attempts to reach Gavin Superintendent John Ahlemeyer Thursday were unsuccessful.

Authorities said the student told her grandparents she had sexual contact several times with Vucic in 2012. Police are still investigating and believe there may be more victims.

Nerheim asked that anyone with information about the case contact the Lake County sheriff's office at (847) 377-4000, or the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center at (847) 377-3155.