Official misconduct conviction overturned for Maywood cop
A former Maywood police officer, already acquitted of a March 2012 sexual assault, had his remaining official misconduct conviction overturned Tuesday.
During a November bench trial, Judge George Bakalis found Deon Sams, 40, not guilty of four counts of criminal sexual assault involving an encounter with a woman on his lunch break. Bakalis did find Sams guilty of one of two counts of official misconduct, which carried a penalty ranging from probation to three years in prison.
On Tuesday, Bakalis reversed his decision, ruling that while Sams violated police department policy by spending his lunch hour outside the village of Maywood, he did not violate any laws under the official misconduct statute.
Outside court, Sams called the case a "bogus" attempt to ruin his life and professional career by a woman looking to get money from him.
"Yes, I went and had consensual sex on my lunch break, on my personal time. Everybody's done it. I didn't do anything illegal," Sams said. "Had I received a call for service, which almost never happened in my 16 years as a police officer, and I refused to answer, the most punishment I would have received was being written up or a one-day suspension. Nothing I did that night rises to the level of being caught up in the DuPage County courts."
Prosecutors have until March 3 to appeal the ruling.
During his trial, Sams testified he picked up a 36-year-old Bellwood woman in his Maywood police SUV shortly after 2 a.m. March 24, 2012, and drove her to her brother's nearby house because she was locked out of her home for the night.
The woman, along with an Oak Brook police officer, also testified that she had been arrested and charged with DUI in Oak Brook at 12:28 a.m. that day after her blood alcohol content level registered .186 - more than twice the legal threshold.
A short time later, the woman's boyfriend picked her up from the police station and drove her home. Angry with her for getting the DUI, she testified he dropped her off outside her home and sped away.
After no one answered at her brother's home, Sams testified he drove the woman to a local motel and gave her $100 for a room. On the drive to the hotel, Sams said the woman complimented his appearance and flirted with him, and the two talked about giving each other massages.
With no room available at the hotel, the woman returned to the police SUV and Sams drove to the Maywood police station. Once there, the woman got into Sams' personal car as Sams attended to another police call.
Some time later, Sams said he returned to the police department, got in his personal vehicle and drove the woman to a hotel on the 0-10 block of West Roosevelt Road in Villa Park. Once in the room, Sams said the two had a consensual sexual encounter.
"If you look at the log, I worked harder and answered more calls than any other officer that night," Sams said Tuesday. "I was a hard-working, dedicated officer who made the mistake of cheating on my wife. That's it."
Sams resigned from the Maywood force shortly after the allegations were made by the woman but months before charges were filed. He said Tuesday he hopes to resume a career in law enforcement.
"I'll likely never be a police officer again because I have no desire to start at the patrol level and work my way back up," Sams said. "But with this behind me, I think I'm going to pursue some job opportunities in corrections."