More probation for Crystal Lake sex offender who dressed as Santa

A sex offender from Crystal Lake received jail time and probation this week after admitting to dressing up a year ago as Santa Claus and posing for photos with children at a Huntley-area animal shelter.

McHenry County Judge Sharon Prather sentenced Taylor L. Blaul, 33, of the 5700 block of Aspen Court, to 60 days in jail and probation after he pleaded guilty earlier this year to violating his sex offender probation from a 2014 case.

He also pleaded guilty to breaking the law in dressing up as Santa, or sex offender participation in a holiday event, according to court records and prosecutors.

At a sentencing hearing in Woodstock, Assistant State's Attorney Victor Escarcida argued for three years in prison for Blaul, saying he was on sex offender probation when he committed another felony and that probation would be inappropriate considering the severity of the offense.

Attorneys from Donahue & Walsh, the firm that represented Blaul in the matter, argued for probation.

Messages for the firm went unreturned Thursday.

Blaul was arrested after a resident at the Animal House Shelter, 13005 Ernesti Road, recognized him at an event Dec. 4, 2016, and called authorities. Blaul was arrested two days later.

"There was a person who recognized (Blaul) and knew of his status as a sex offender, and that citizen noticed he was in a Santa Claus suit taking pictures with children and saw he had a child on his lap," Escarcida said. "He was serving a sentence for a sex-based felony when he committed this (new felony offense)."

Blaul was not accused of molesting any children at the shelter.

He was arrested in July 2014 on the felony charge of aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a child 13 or younger, records show.

Blaul pleaded guilty in summer 2015 to sexually abusing a boy over several months and was sentenced to three years' probation and 120 days in jail, and fined $3,910. Part of his sentence included a requirement that he register for life as a sex offender. He could have received up to seven years in prison.

A woman who answered the phone at the shelter Thursday said the shelter's board of directors was in the process of preparing a statement for the media.

If Blaul again violates his probation, he can be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison - seven years on the 2014 felony and up to three years in prison for the 2016 felony.